Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics

Richard P. Stanley

Algebraic
Combinatorics
Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics

Series Editors:

Sheldon Axler
San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA, USA

Kenneth Ribet
University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA

Advisory Board:

Colin Adams, Williams College, Williamstown, MA, USA

Alejandro Adem, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
Ruth Charney, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA
Irene M. Gamba, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
Roger E. Howe, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
David Jerison, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
Jeffrey C. Lagarias, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
Jill Pipher, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
Fadil Santosa, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
Amie Wilkinson, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics are generally aimed at third- and fourth-

year undergraduate mathematics students at North American universities. These
texts strive to provide students and teachers with new perspectives and novel
approaches. The books include motivation that guides the reader to an appreciation
of interrelations among different aspects of the subject. They feature examples that
illustrate key concepts as well as exercises that strengthen understanding.

For further volumes:

http://www.springer.com/series/666
Richard P. Stanley

Algebraic Combinatorics
Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More

123
Richard P. Stanley
Department of Mathematics
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA, USA

ISSN 0172-6056
ISBN 978-1-4614-6997-1 ISBN 978-1-4614-6998-8 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8
Springer New York Heidelberg Dordrecht London
Library of Congress Control Number: 2013935529

Mathematics Subject Classification (2010): 05Exx

© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013

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 to
Kenneth and Sharon
Preface

This book is intended primarily as a one-semester undergraduate text for a course

in algebraic combinatorics. The main prerequisites are a basic knowledge of linear
algebra (eigenvalues, eigenvectors, etc.) over a field, existence of finite fields, and
some rudimentary understanding of group theory. The one exception is Sect. 12.6,
which involves finite extensions of the rationals including a little Galois theory. Prior
knowledge of combinatorics is not essential but will be helpful.
Why do I write an undergraduate textbook on algebraic combinatorics? One
obvious reason is simply to gather some material that I find very interesting and
hope that students will agree. A second reason concerns students who have taken
an introductory algebra course and want to know what can be done with their new-
found knowledge. Undergraduate courses that require a basic knowledge of algebra
are typically either advanced algebra courses or abstract courses on subjects like
algebraic topology and algebraic geometry. Algebraic combinatorics offers a byway
off the traditional algebraic highway, one that is more intuitive and more easily
accessible.
Algebraic combinatorics is a huge subject, so some selection process was
necessary to obtain the present text. The main results, such as the weak Erdős–
Moser theorem and the enumeration of de Bruijn sequences, have the feature that
their statement does not involve any algebra. Such results are good advertisements
for the unifying power of algebra and for the unity of mathematics as a whole.
All but the last chapter are vaguely connected to walks on graphs and linear
transformations related to them. The final chapter is a hodgepodge of some unrelated
elegant applications of algebra to combinatorics. The sections of this chapter are
independent of each other and the rest of the text. There are also three chapter
appendices on purely enumerative aspects of combinatorics related to the chapter
material: the RSK algorithm, plane partitions, and the enumeration of labelled trees.
Almost all the material covered here can serve as a gateway to much additional
algebraic combinatorics. We hope in fact that this book will serve exactly this
purpose, that is, to inspire its readers to delve more deeply into the fascinating
interplay between algebra and combinatorics.

vii
viii Preface

Many persons have contributed to the writing of this book, but special thanks
should go to Christine Bessenrodt and Sergey Fomin for their careful reading of
portions of earlier manuscripts.

Cambridge, MA Richard P. Stanley

Contents

Preface .. . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Basic Notation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
1 Walks in Graphs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
2 Cubes and the Radon Transform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3 Random Walks .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4 The Sperner Property .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
6 Young Diagrams and q-Binomial Coefficients . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
7 Enumeration Under Group Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 135
10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees.. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151
11 Cycles, Bonds, and Electrical Networks.. . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
11.1 The Cycle Space and Bond Space .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
11.2 Bases for the Cycle Space and Bond Space . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
11.3 Electrical Networks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
11.4 Planar Graphs (Sketch).. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 178
11.5 Squaring the Square .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
12 Miscellaneous Gems of Algebraic Combinatorics . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
12.1 The 100 Prisoners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
12.2 Oddtown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
12.3 Complete Bipartite Partitions of Kn . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
12.4 The Nonuniform Fisher Inequality . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
12.5 Odd Neighborhood Covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

ix
x Contents

12.6 Circulant Hadamard Matrices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 194

12.7 P -Recursive Functions.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200

Hints for Some Exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Index . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219
Basic Notation

P Positive integers
N Nonnegative integers
Z Integers
Q Rational numbers
R Real numbers
C Complex numbers
Œn The set f1; 2; : : : ; ng for n 2 N (so Œ0 D ;)
Zn The group of integers modulo n
RŒx The ring of polynomials in the variable x with coefficients
in the ring R
YX For sets X and Y , the set of all functions f W X ! Y
WD Equal by definition
Fq The finite field with q elements
.j / 1 C q C q 2 C    C q j 1
#S or jS j Cardinality (number of elements) of the finite set S

S [T The disjoint union of S and T , i.e., S [ T , where S \ T D ;
2 S The set of all subsets of the set S
S
k  The set of k-element subsets of S
S
k The set of k-element multisets on S
KS The vector space with basis S over the field K
Bn The poset of all subsets of Œn, ordered by inclusion
.x/ The rank of the element x in a graded poset
Œx n F .x/ Coefficient of x n in the polynomial or power series F .x/
x É y, y Ê x y covers x in a poset P
ıij The Kronecker delta, which equals 1 if i D j and 0 otherwise
jLj The sum of the parts (entries) of L, if L is any array of
nonnegative integers
`./ Length (number of parts) of the partition 

xi
xii Basic Notation

p.n/ Number of partitions of the integer n  0

ker ' The kernel of a linear transformation or group homomorphism
Sn Symmetric group of all permutations of 1; 2; : : : ; n
 The identity permutation of a set X , i.e., .x/ D x for all x 2 X
Chapter 1
Walks in Graphs

 
Given a finite set S and integer k  0, let Sk denote the set of k-element subsets
of S . A multiset may be regarded, somewhat informally, as a set with repeated
elements, such as f1; 1; 3; 4; 4; 4; 6; 6g. We are only concerned with how many times
each element occurs and not on any ordering of the elements. Thus for instance
f2; 1; 2; 4; 1; 2g and f1; 1; 2; 2; 2; 4g are the same multiset: they each contain two
1’s, three 2’s, and one 4 (and no other elements). We say that a multiset M is on a
set S if every element of M belongs to S . Thus the multiset in the example
 above is
on the set S D f1; 3; 4; 6g and also on any set containing S . Let k denote the set
S

of k-element multisets on S . For instance, if S D f1; 2; 3g then (using abbreviated

notation),
!  
S S
D f12; 13; 23g; D f11; 22; 33; 12; 13; 23g:
2 2

We now define what is meant by a graph. Intuitively, graphs have vertices and
edges, where each edge “connects” two vertices (which may be the same). It is
possible for two different edges e and e 0 to connect the same two vertices. We want
to be able to distinguish between these two edges, necessitating the following more
precise definition. A (finite) graph G consists of a vertex setV D
 fv1 ; : : : ; vp g and
edge set E D fe1 ; : : : ; eq g, together with a function 'W E ! V2 . We think that if
'.e/ D uv (short for fu; vg), then e connects u and v or equivalently e is incident to
u and v. If there is at least one edge incident to u and v then we say that the vertices
u and v are adjacent. If '.e/ D vv, then we call e a loop at v. If several edges
e1 ; : : : ; ej (j > 1) satisfy '.e1 / D    D '.ej / D uv, then we say that there is a
multiple edge between u and v. A graph without loops or  multiple edges is called
simple. In this case we can think of E as just a subset of V2 [why?].
The adjacency matrix of the graph G is the p  p matrix A D A.G/, over
the field of complex numbers, whose .i; j /-entry aij is equal to the number of

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 1

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 1,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
2 1 Walks in Graphs

edges incident to vi and vj . Thus A is a real symmetric matrix (and hence has
real eigenvalues) whose trace is the number of loops in G. For instance, if G is the
graph

1 2

4 5

then
2 3
2 1 0 2 0
61 17
6 0 0 0 7
6 7
A.G/ D 6 0 0 0 0 07:
6 7
42 0 0 0 15
0 1 0 1 1

A walk in G of length ` from vertex u to vertex v is a sequence v1 ; e1 ; v2 ; e2 ; : : : ,

v` ; e` ; v`C1 such that:
• Each vi is a vertex of G.
• Each ej is an edge of G.
• The vertices of ei are vi and vi C1 , for 1  i  `.
• v1 D u and v`C1 D v.
1.1 Theorem. For any integer `  1, the .i; j /-entry of the matrix A.G/` is equal
to the number of walks from vi to vj in G of length `.
Proof. This is an immediate consequence of the definition of matrix multiplication.
Let A D .aij /. The .i; j /-entry of A.G/` is given by
X
.A.G/` /ij D ai i1 ai1 i2    ai`1 j ;

where the sum ranges over all sequences .i1 ; : : : ; i`1 / with 1  ik  p. But
since ars is the number of edges between vr and vs , it follows that the summand
ai i1 ai1 i2    ai`1 j in the above sum is just the number (which may be 0) of walks of
length ` from vi to vj of the form

vi ; e1 ; vi1 ; e2 ; : : : ; vi`1 ; e` ; vj

(since there are ai i1 choices for e1 , ai1 i2 choices for e2 , etc.) Hence summing over
all .i1 ; : : : ; i`1 / just gives the total number of walks of length ` from vi to vj , as
desired. t
u
1 Walks in Graphs 3

We wish to use Theorem 1.1 to obtain an explicit formula for the number
.A.G/` /ij of walks of length ` in G from vi to vj . The formula we give will depend
on the eigenvalues of A.G/. The eigenvalues of A.G/ are also called simply the
eigenvalues of G. Recall that a real symmetric p  p matrix M has p linearly
independent real eigenvectors, which can in fact be chosen to be orthonormal (i.e.,
orthogonal and of unit length). Let u1 ; : : : ; up be real orthonormal eigenvectors for
M , with corresponding eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p . All vectors u will be regarded as
p  1 column vectors, unless specified otherwise. We let t denote transpose, so ut
is a 1  p row vector. Thus the dot (or scalar or inner) product of the vectors u
and v is given by ut v (ordinary matrix multiplication). In particular, uti uj D ıij
(the Kronecker delta). Let U D .uij / be the matrix whose columns are u1 ; : : : ; up ,
denoted U D Œu1 ; : : : ; up . Thus U is an orthogonal matrix, so
2 3
ut1
6 : 7
U t D U 1 D 4 :: 5 ;
utp

the matrix whose rows are ut1 ; : : : ; utp . Recall from linear algebra that the matrix U
diagonalizes M , i.e.,
U 1 M U D diag.1 ; : : : ; p /;

where diag.1 ; : : : ; p / denotes the diagonal matrix with diagonal entries 1 ; : : : ; p

(in that order).
1.2 Corollary. Given the graph G as above, fix the two vertices vi and vj . Let
1 ; : : : ; p be the eigenvalues of the adjacency matrix A.G/. Then there exist real
numbers c1 ; : : : ; cp such that for all `  1, we have

.A.G/` /ij D c1 `1 C    C cp `p : (1.1)

In fact, if U D.urs / is a real orthogonal matrix such that U 1 AU Ddiag.1 ; : : :; p /,

then we have
ck D ui k uj k :
Proof. We have [why?]

U 1 A ` U D diag.`1 ; : : : ; `p /:

Hence
A ` D U  diag.`1 ; : : : ; `p /U 1 :
Taking the .i; j /-entry of both sides (and using U 1 D U t ) gives [why?]
X
.A ` /ij D ui k `k uj k ;
k

as desired. t
u
4 1 Walks in Graphs

In order for Corollary 1.2 to be of any use we must be able to compute the
eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p as well as the diagonalizing matrix U (or eigenvectors ui ).
There is one interesting special situation in which it is not necessary to compute U .
A closed walk in G is a walk that ends where it begins. The number of closed walks
in G of length ` starting at vi is therefore given by .A.G/` /i i , so the total number
fG .`/ of closed walks of length ` is given by

X
p
fG .`/ D .A.G/` /i i
i D1

D tr.A.G/` /;

where tr denotes trace (sum of the main diagonal entries). Now recall that the trace
of a square matrix is the sum of its eigenvalues. If the matrix M has eigenvalues
1 ; : : : ; p then [why?] M ` has eigenvalues `1 ; : : : ; `p . Hence we have proved the
following.
1.3 Corollary. Suppose A.G/ has eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p . Then the number of
closed walks in G of length ` is given by

fG .`/ D `1 C    C `p :

We now are in a position to use various tricks and techniques from linear algebra
to count walks in graphs. Conversely, it is sometimes possible to count the walks by
combinatorial reasoning and use the resulting formula to determine the eigenvalues
of G. As a first simple example, we consider the complete graph Kp with vertex set
V D fv1 ; : : :; vp g and one edge between any two distinct vertices. Thus Kp has p
vertices and p2 D 12 p.p  1/ edges.
1.4 Lemma. Let J denote the p  p matrix of all 1’s. Then the eigenvalues of J
are p (with multiplicity one) and 0 (with multiplicity p  1).

Proof. Since all rows are equal and nonzero, we have rank.J / D 1. Since a p  p
matrix of rank p  m has at least m eigenvalues equal to 0, we conclude that J has
at least p  1 eigenvalues equal to 0. Since tr.J / D p and the trace is the sum of
the eigenvalues, it follows that the remaining eigenvalue of J is equal to p. t
u
1.5 Proposition. The eigenvalues of the complete graph Kp are as follows:
an eigenvalue of 1 with multiplicity p  1 and an eigenvalue of p  1 with
multiplicity one.
Proof. We have A.Kp / D J  I , where I denotes the p  p identity matrix. If the
eigenvalues of a matrix M are 1 ; : : : ; p , then the eigenvalues of M CcI (where c
is a scalar) are 1 C c; : : : ; p C c [why?]. The proof follows from Lemma 1.4. u t
1 Walks in Graphs 5

1.6 Corollary. The number of closed walks of length ` in Kp from some vertex vi
to itself is given by

1
.A.Kp /` /i i D ..p  1/` C .p  1/.1/` /: (1.2)
p

(Note that this is also the number of sequences .i1 ; : : : ; i` / of numbers 1; 2; : : : ; p

such that i1 D i , no two consecutive terms are equal, and i` ¤ i1 [why?].)

Proof. By Corollary 1.3 and Proposition 1.5, the total number of closed walks in
Kp of length ` is equal to .p  1/` C .p  1/.1/` . By the symmetry of the graph
Kp , the number of closed walks of length ` from vi to itself does not depend on i .
(All vertices “look the same.”) Hence we can divide the total number of closed walks
by p (the number of vertices) to get the desired answer. t
u

A combinatorial proof of Corollary 1.6 is quite tricky (Exercise 1). Our algebraic
proof gives a first hint of the power of algebra to solve enumerative problems.
What about non-closed walks in Kp ? It’s not hard to diagonalize explicitly the
matrix A.Kp / (or equivalently, to compute its eigenvectors), but there is an even
simpler special argument. We have
!
X̀
`k `
.J  I / D
`
.1/ J k; (1.3)
k
kD0

by the binomial theorem.1 Now for k > 0 we have J k D p k1 J [why?], while
J 0 D I . (It is not clear a priori what is the “correct” value of J 0 , but in order for
(1.3) to be valid we must take J 0 D I .) Hence
!
X̀ ` k1
.J  I / D
`
.1/ `k
p J C .1/` I:
k
kD1

Again by the binomial theorem we have

1
.J  I /` D ..p  1/`  .1/` /J C .1/` I: (1.4)
p

Taking the .i; j /-entry of each side when i ¤ j yields

1
.A.Kp /` /ij D ..p  1/`  .1/` /: (1.5)
p

1
We can apply the binomial theorem in this situation because I and J commute. If A and B
are p  p matrices that don’t necessarily commute, then the best we can say is .A C B/2 D
A2 C AB C BA C B 2 and similarly for higher powers.
6 1 Walks in Graphs

If we take the .i; i /-entry of (1.4) then we recover (1.2). Note the curious fact that if
i ¤ j then
.A.Kp /` /i i  .A.Kp /` /ij D .1/` :
We could also have deduced (1.5) from Corollary 1.6 using

X
p
X
p
 
A.Kp /` ij D p.p  1/` ;
i D1 j D1

the total number of walks of length ` in Kp . Details are left to the reader.
We now will show how (1.2) itself determines the eigenvalues of A.Kp /. Thus
if (1.2) is proved without first computing the eigenvalues of A.Kp / (which in fact
is what we did two paragraphs ago), then we have another means to compute the
eigenvalues. The argument we will give can in principle be applied to any graph G,
not just Kp . We begin with a simple lemma.
1.7 Lemma. Suppose ˛1 ; : : : ; ˛r and ˇ1 ; : : : ; ˇs are nonzero complex numbers such
that for all positive integers `, we have

˛1` C    C ˛r` D ˇ1` C    C ˇs` : (1.6)

Then r D s and the ˛’s are just a permutation of the ˇ’s.

Proof. We will use the powerful method of generating functions. Let x be a complex
number whose absolute value (or modulus) is close to 0. Multiply (1.6) by x ` and
sum on all `  1. The geometric series we obtain will converge, and we get

˛1 x ˛r x ˇ1 x ˇs x
CC D CC : (1.7)
1  ˛1 x 1  ˛r x 1  ˇ1 x 1  ˇs x

This is an identity valid for sufficiently small (in modulus) complex numbers. By
clearing denominators we obtain a polynomial identity. But if two polynomials in x
agree for infinitely many values, then they are the same polynomial [why?]. Hence
(1.7) is actually valid for all complex numbers x (ignoring values of x which give
rise to a zero denominator).
Fix a complex number  ¤ 0. Multiply (1.7) by 1  x and let x ! 1= . The
left-hand side becomes the number of ˛i ’s which are equal to  , while the right-
hand side becomes the number of ˇj ’s which are equal to  [why?]. Hence these
numbers agree for all  , so the lemma is proved. t
u
1.8 Example. Suppose that G is a graph with 12 vertices and that the number of
closed walks of length ` in G is equal to 3  5` C 4` C 2.2/` C 4. Then it follows
from Corollary 1.3 and Lemma 1.7 [why?] that the eigenvalues of A.G/ are given
by 5; 5; 5; 4; 2; 2; 1; 1; 1; 1; 0; 0.
Exercises for Chap. 1 7

Notes for Chap. 1

The connection between graph eigenvalues and the enumeration of walks is

considered “folklore.” The subject of spectral graph theory, which is concerned with
the spectrum (multiset of eigenvalues) of various matrices associated with graphs,
began around 1931 in the area of quantum chemistry. The first mathematical paper
was published by L. Collatz and U. Sinogowitz in 1957. A good general reference
is the book2 [22] by Cvetković et al. Two textbooks on this subject are by Cvetković
et al. [23] and by Brouwer and Haemers [13].

Exercises for Chap. 1

NOTE. An exercise marked with (*) is treated in the Hints section beginning on
page 209.
1. (tricky) Find a combinatorial proof of Corollary 1.6, i.e., the number of closed
walks of length ` in Kp from some vertex to itself is given by p1 ..p  1/` C
.p  1/.1/` /.
2. Suppose that the graph G has 15 vertices and that the number of closed walks
of length ` in G is 8` C 2  3` C 3  .1/` C .6/` C 5 for all `  1. Let G 0 be the
graph obtained from G by adding a loop at each vertex (in addition to whatever
loops are already there). How many closed walks of length ` are there in G 0 ?
(Use linear algebraic techniques. You can also try to solve the problem purely
by combinatorial reasoning.)
3. A bipartite graph G with vertex bipartition .A; B/ is a graph whose vertex set
is the disjoint union A[B  of A and B, such that every edge of G is incident to
one vertex in A and one vertex in B. Show by a walk-counting argument that
the nonzero eigenvalues of G come in pairs ˙.
An equivalent formulation can be given in terms of the characteristic poly-
nomial f .x/ of the matrix A.G/. Recall that the characteristic polynomial
of a p  p matrix A is defined to be det.A  xI /. The present exercise is
then equivalent to the statement that when G is bipartite, the characteristic
polynomial f .x/ of A.G/ has the form g.x 2 / (if G has an even number of
vertices) or xg.x 2 / (if G has an odd number of vertices) for some polynomial
g.x/.
NOTE. Sometimes the characteristic polynomial of a p p matrix A is defined
to be det.xI A/ D .1/p det.AxI /. We will use the definition det.AxI /,
so that the value at x D 0 is det A.

2
All citations to the literature refer to the bibliography beginning on page 213.
8 1 Walks in Graphs

4. Let r; s  1. The complete bipartite graph Krs has vertices u1 ; u2 ; : : : ; ur ,

v1 ; v2 , : : : ; vs , with one edge between each ui and vj (so rs edges in all).
(a) By purely combinatorial reasoning, compute the number of closed walks
of length ` in Krs .
(b) Deduce from (a) the eigenvalues of Krs .
5. (*) Let Hn be the complete bipartite graph Knn with n vertex-disjoint edges
removed. Thus Hn has 2n vertices and n.n  1/ edges, each of degree (number
of incident edges) n  1. Show that the eigenvalues of G are ˙1 (n  1 times
each) and ˙.n  1/ (once each).
6. Let n  1. The complete p-partite graph K.n; p/ has vertex set V D
V1 [    [V
 p (disjoint union), where each jVi j D n, and an edge from every
element of Vi to every element of Vj when i ¤ j . (If u; v 2 Vi then there is no
edge uv.) Thus K.1; p/ is the complete graph Kp , and K.n; 2/ is the complete
bipartite graph Knn .
(a) (*) Use Corollary 1.6 to find the number of closed walks of length ` in
K.n; p/.
(b) Deduce from (a) the eigenvalues of K.n; p/.
7. Let G be any finite simple graph, with eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p . Let G.n/ be
the graph obtained from G by replacing each vertex v of G with a set Vv of
n vertices, such that if uv is an edge of G, then there is an edge from every
vertex of Vu to every vertex of Vv (and no other edges). For instance, Kp .n/ D
K.n; p/. Find the eigenvalues of G.n/ in terms of 1 ; : : : ; p .
8. Let G be a (finite) graph on p vertices. Let G 0 be the graph obtained from G
by placing a new edge ev incident to each vertex v, with the other vertex of ev
being a new vertex v0 . Thus G 0 has p new edges and p new vertices. The new
vertices all have degree one. By combinatorial or algebraicqreasoning, show
that if G has eigenvalues i then G 0 has eigenvalues .i ˙ 2i C 4/=2. (An
algebraic proof is much easier than a combinatorial proof.)
9. Let G be a (finite) graph with vertices v1 ; : : : ; vp and eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p .
We know that for any i; j there are real numbers c1 .i; j /; : : : ; cp .i; j / such
that for all `  1,
  Xp
A.G/` ij D ck .i; j /`k :
kD1

(a) Show that ck .i; i /  0.

(b) Show that if i ¤ j then we can have ck .i; j / < 0. (The simplest possible
example will work.)
10. Let G be a finite graph with eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p . Let G ? be the graph with
the same vertex set as G and with .u; v/ edges between vertices u and v
(including u D v), where .u; v/ is the number of walks in G of length two
from u to v. For example,
Exercises for Chap. 1 9

G G*
Find the eigenvalues of G ? in terms of those of G.
11. (*) Let Kno denote the complete graph with n vertices, with oneloop at each
vertex. (Thus A.Kno / D Jn , the n  n all 1’s matrix, and Kno has nC1
2 edges.)
Let Kno  Kmo denote Kno with the edges of Kmo removed, i.e., choose m vertices
of Kno and remove
 all edges between these vertices (including loops). (Thus
mC1
Kno  Kmo has nC12  2 edges.) Find the number C.`/ of closed walks in
D K21 o
 K18o
of length `  1.
12. (a) Let G be a finite graph and let
be the maximum degree of any vertex of
G. Let 1 be the largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix A.G/. Show
that 1 
.
(b) (*) Suppose that G is simplep(no loops or multiple edges) and has a total
of q edges. Show that 1  2q.
13. Let G be a finite graph with at least two vertices. Suppose that for some `  1,
the number of walks of length ` between any two vertices u; v (including u D v)
is odd. Show that there is a nonempty subset S of the vertices such that S has
an even number of elements and such that every vertex v of G is adjacent to
an even number of vertices in S . (A vertex v is adjacent to itself if and only if
there is a loop at v.)
Chapter 2
Cubes and the Radon Transform

Let us now consider a more interesting example of a graph G, one whose

eigenvalues have come up in a variety of applications. Let Z2 denote the cyclic group
of order 2, with elements 0 and 1 and group operation being addition modulo 2.
Thus 0 C 0 D 0, 0 C 1 D 1 C 0 D 1, and 1 C 1 D 0. Let Zn2 denote the direct
product of Z2 with itself n times, so the elements of Zn2 are n-tuples .a1 ; : : : ; an /
of 0’s and 1’s, under the operation of component-wise addition. Define a graph Cn ,
called the n-cube, as follows: the vertex set of Cn is given by V .Cn / D Zn2 , and two
vertices u and v are connected by an edge if they differ in exactly one component.
Equivalently, uCv has exactly one nonzero component. If we regard Zn2 as consisting
of real vectors, then these vectors form the set of vertices of an n-dimensional cube.
Moreover, two vertices of the cube lie on an edge (in the usual geometric sense) if
and only if they form an edge of Cn . This explains why Cn is called the n-cube.
We also see that walks in Cn have a nice geometric interpretation—they are simply
walks along the edges of an n-dimensional cube.
We want to determine explicitly the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of Cn . We will
do this by a somewhat indirect but extremely useful and powerful technique, the
finite Radon transform. Let V denote the set of all functions f W Zn2 ! R, where R
denotes the field of real numbers.1 Note that V is a vector space over R of dimension
2n [why?]. If u D .u1 ; : : : ; un / and v D .v1 ; : : : ; vn / are elements of Zn2 , then define
their dot product by
u  v D u 1 v1 C    C u n vn ; (2.1)

where the computation is performed modulo 2. Thus we regard u  v as an element

of Z2 . The expression .1/uv is defined to be the real number C1 or 1, depending
on whether u  v D 0 or 1, respectively. Since for integers k the value of .1/k

For abelian groups other than Zn2 it is necessary to use complex numbers rather than real numbers.
1

We could use complex numbers here, but there is no need to do so.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 11

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 2,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
12 2 Cubes and the Radon Transform

depends only on k (mod 2), it follows that we can treat u and v as integer vectors
without affecting the value of .1/uv . Thus, for instance, formulas such as

.1/u.vCw/ D .1/uvCuw D .1/uv .1/uw

are well defined and valid. From a more algebraic viewpoint, the map Z ! f1; 1g
sending n to .1/n is a group homomorphism, where of course the product on
f1; 1g is multiplication.
We now define two important bases of the vector space V. There will be one basis
element of each basis for each u 2 Zn2 . The first basis, denoted B1 , has elements fu
defined as follows:
fu .v/ D ıuv ; (2.2)
the Kronecker delta. It is easy to see that B1 is a basis, since any g 2 V satisfies
X
gD g.u/fu (2.3)
u2Zn2

[why?]. Hence B1 spans V, so since #B1 D dim V D 2n , it follows that B1 is a

basis. The second basis, denoted B2 , has elements u defined as follows:

u .v/ D .1/uv :

In order to show that B2 is a basis, we will use an inner product on V (denoted h; i)
defined by
X
hf; gi D f .u/g.u/:
u2Zn2

Note that this inner product is just the usual dot product with respect to the basis B1 .
2.1 Lemma. The set B2 D fu W u 2 Zn2 g forms a basis for V.
Proof. Since #B2 D dim V (D 2n ), it suffices to show that B2 is linearly
independent. In fact, we will show that the elements of B2 are orthogonal.2 We
have
X
hu ; v i D u .w/v .w/
w2Zn2
X
D .1/.uCv/w:
w2Zn2

2
Recall from linear algebra that nonzero orthogonal vectors in a real vector space are linearly
independent.
2 Cubes and the Radon Transform 13

It is left as an easy exercise to the reader to show that for any y 2 Zn2 , we have

X 
2n ; if y D 0,
.1/ yw
D
0; otherwise,
w2Zn2

where 0 denotes the identity element of Zn2 (the vector .0; 0; : : : ; 0/). Thus hu ; v i
D 0 if and only u C v D 0, i.e., u D v, so the elements of B2 are orthogonal (and
nonzero). Hence they are linearly independent as desired. t
u

We now come to the key definition of the Radon transform.

Given a subset  of Zn2 and a function f 2 V, define a new function ˆ f 2 V by
X
ˆ f .v/ D f .v C w/:
w2

The function ˆ f is called the (discrete or finite) Radon transform of f (on the
group Zn2 , with respect to the subset ).
We have defined a map ˆ W V ! V. It is easy to see that ˆ is a linear
transformation; we want to compute its eigenvalues and eigenvectors.
2.2 Theorem. The eigenvectors of ˆ are the functions u , where u 2 Zn2 . The
eigenvalue u corresponding to u (i.e., ˆ u D u u ) is given by
X
u D .1/uw :
w2

Proof. Let v 2 Zn2 . Then

X
ˆ u .v/ D u .v C w/
w2
X
D .1/u.vCw/
w2
!
X
D .1/ uw
.1/uv
w2
!
X
D .1/ uw
u .v/:
w2

Hence
!
X
ˆ u D .1/ uw
u ;
w2

as desired. t
u
14 2 Cubes and the Radon Transform

Note that because the u ’s form a basis for V by Lemma 2.1, it follows that
Theorem 2.2 yields a complete set of eigenvalues and eigenvectors for ˆ . Note also
that the eigenvectors u of ˆ are independent of ; only the eigenvalues depend
on .
Now we come to the payoff. Let
D fı1 ; : : : ; ın g, where ıi is the i th unit
coordinate vector (i.e., ıi has a 1 in position i and 0’s elsewhere). Note that the j th
coordinate of ıi is just ıij (the Kronecker delta), explaining our notation ıi . Let Œˆ

denote the matrix of the linear transformation ˆ
W V ! V with respect to the basis
B1 of V given by (2.2).
2.3 Lemma. We have Œˆ
 D A.Cn /, the adjacency matrix of the n-cube.
Proof. Let v 2 Zn2 . We have
X
ˆ
fu .v/ D fu .v C w/
w2

X
D fuCw .v/;
w2

since u D v C w if and only if u C w D v. There follows

X
ˆ
fu D fuCw : (2.4)
w2

Equation (2.4) says that the .u; v/-entry of the matrix ˆ

is given by

1; if u C v 2
,
.ˆ
/uv D
0; otherwise:

Now u C v 2
if and only if u and v differ in exactly one coordinate. This is just
the condition for uv to be an edge of Cn , so the proof follows. t
u
2.4 Corollary. The eigenvectors Eu (u 2 Zn2 ) of A.Cn / (regarded as linear
combinations of the vertices of Cn , i.e., of the elements of Zn2 ) are given by
X
Eu D .1/uv v: (2.5)
v2Zn2

The eigenvalue u corresponding to the eigenvector Eu is given by

u D n  2!.u/; (2.6)

where !.u/ is the number of 1’s in u. (The integer !.u/

 is called the Hamming
weight or simply the weight of u.) Hence A.Cn / has ni eigenvalues equal to n2i ,
for each 0  i  n.
2 Cubes and the Radon Transform 15

Proof. For any function g 2 V we have by (2.3) that

X
gD g.v/fv :
v

Applying this equation to g D u gives

X X
u D u .v/fv D .1/uv fv : (2.7)
v v

Equation (2.7) expresses the eigenvector u of ˆ

(or even ˆ for any   Zn2 ) as
a linear combination of the functions fv . But ˆ
has the same matrix with respect
to the basis of the fv ’s as A.Cn / has with respect to the vertices v of Cn . Hence the
expansion of the eigenvectors of ˆ
in terms of the fv ’s has the same coefficients
as the expansion of the eigenvectors of A.Cn / in terms of the v’s, so (2.5) follows.
According to Theorem 2.2 the eigenvalue u corresponding to the eigenvector u
of ˆ
(or equivalently, the eigenvector Eu of A.Cn /) is given by
X
u D .1/uw : (2.8)
w2

Now
D fı1 ; : : : ; ın g and ıi  u is 1 if u has a one in its i th coordinate and is 0
otherwise. Hence the sum in (2.8) has n  !.u/ terms equal to C1 and !.u/ terms
equal to 1, so u D .n  !.u//  !.u/ D n  2!.u/, as claimed. t
u

We have all the information needed to count walks in Cn .

2.5 Corollary. Let u; v 2 Zn2 , and suppose that !.u C v/ D k (i.e., u and v disagree
in exactly k coordinates). Then the number of walks of length ` in Cn between u and
v is given by
! !
1 XX
n k
j k nk
.A /uv D n
`
.1/ .n  2i /` ; (2.9)
2 i D0 j D0 j i j
nk
where we set i j D 0 if j > i . In particular,
!
1 X n
n
.A ` /uu D n .n  2i /` : (2.10)
2 i D0 i

Proof. Let Eu and u be as in Corollary 2.4. In order to apply Corollary 1.2, we need
the eigenvectors to be of unit length (where we regard the fv ’s as an orthonormal
basis of V). By (2.5), we have
X
jEu j2 D ..1/uv /2 D 2n :
v2Zn2
16 2 Cubes and the Radon Transform

Hence we should replace Eu by Eu0 D 1

E
2n=2 u
to get an orthonormal basis. According
to Corollary 1.2, we thus have

1 X
.A` /uv D Euw Evw `w :
2n n
w2Z2

Now Euw by definition is the coefficient of fw in the expansion (2.5), i.e., Euw D
.1/uCw (and similarly for Ev ), while w D n  2!.w/. Hence

1 X
.A ` /uv D .1/.uCv/w.n  2!.w//` : (2.11)
2n n
w2Z2

The number
  of vectors
 w of Hamming weight i which have j 1’s in common with k 
u C v is jk nk
i j , since we can choose the j 1’s in u C v which agree with w in j
ways, while the remaining
 i  j 1’s of w can be inserted in the n  k remaining
positions in nk
i j ways. Since .u C v/  w  j .mod 2/, the sum (2.11) reduces
to (2.9) as desired. Clearly setting u D v in (2.9) yields (2.10), completing the
proof. t
u

It is possible to give a direct proof of (2.10) avoiding linear algebra, though we

do not do so here. Thus by Corollary 1.3 and Lemma 1.7 (exactly as was done for
Kn ) we have another determination of the eigenvalues of Cn . With a little more work
one can also obtain a direct proof of (2.9). Later in Example 9.12, however, we will
use the eigenvalues of Cn to obtain a combinatorial result for which a nonalgebraic
proof was found only recently and is by no means easy.
2.6 Example. Setting k D 1 in (2.9) yields
" ! !#
1 X
n
n1 n1
`
.A /uv D n  .n  2i /`
2 i D0 i i 1

!
1 X n  1 .n  2i /`C1
n1
D n :
2 i D0 i ni

NOTE (for those familiar with the representation theory of finite groups).
The functions u W Zn2 ! R are just the irreducible (complex) characters of the group
Zn2 , and the orthogonality of the u ’s shown in the proof of Lemma 2.1 is the usual
orthogonality relation for the irreducible characters of a finite group. The results of
this chapter extend readily to any finite abelian group. Exercise 5 does the case Zn ,
the cyclic group of order n. For nonabelian finite groups the situation is much more
complicated because not all irreducible representations have degree one (i.e., are
homomorphisms G ! C , the multiplicative group of C), and there do not exist
formulas as explicit as the ones for abelian groups.
Notes for Chap. 2 17

We can give a little taste of the situation for arbitrary groups as follows. Let G be
a finite group, and let M .G/ be its multiplication table. Regard the entries of M .G/
as commuting indeterminates, so that M .G/ is simply a matrix with indeterminate
entries. For instance, let G D Z3 . Let the elements of G be a; b; c, where say a is
the identity. Then
2 3
a b c
M .G/ D 4 b c a 5 :
c a b
We can compute that det M .G/ D .aCb Cc/.aC!b C! 2 c/.aC! 2 b C!c/, where
! D e 2 i=3 . In general, when G is abelian, Dedekind knew that det M .G/ factors
into certain explicit linear factors over C. Theorem 2.2 is equivalent to this statement
for the group G D Zn2 [why?]. Equation (12.5) gives the factorization for G D Zn .
(For each w 2 G one needs to interchange the row indexed by the group element w
with the row indexed by w1 in order to convert M .Zn / to the circulant matrices of
(12.5), but these operations only affect the sign of the determinant.) Dedekind asked
Frobenius about the factorization of det M .G/, known as the group determinant,
for nonabelian finite G. For instance, let G D S3 (the symmetric group of all
permutations of 1; 2; 3), with elements (in cycle notation) a D .1/.2/.3/, b D
.1; 2/.3/, c D .1; 3/.2/, d D .1/.2; 3/, e D .1; 2; 3/, and f D .1; 3; 2/. Then
det M .G/ D f1 f2 f32 , where

f1 D a C b C c C d C e C f;
f2 D a C b C c C d  e  f;
f3 D a2  b 2  c 2  d 2 C e 2 C f 2  ae  af C bc C bd C cd  ef:

Frobenius showed that in general there is a set P of irreducible homogeneous

polynomials f , of some degree df , where #P is the number of conjugacy classes
of G, for which
Y
det M .G/ D f df :
f 2P
P
Note that taking the degree of both sides gives #G D f df2 . Frobenius’ result was
a highlight in his development of group representation theory. The numbers df are
just the degrees of the irreducible (complex) representations of G. For the symmetric
group Sn , these degrees are the numbers
P f  of Theorem 8.1, and Appendix 1 of
Chap. 8 gives a bijective proof that  .f / D nŠ.
 2

Notes for Chap. 2

The Radon transform first arose in a continuous setting in the paper [90] of Radon
and has been applied to such areas as computerized tomography. The finite version
was first defined by Bolker [9]. For some further applications to combinatorics see
18 2 Cubes and the Radon Transform

Kung [67]. For the Radon transform on the n-cube Zn2 , see Diaconis and Graham
[28]. For the generalization to Znk , see DeDeo and Velasquez [27].
For an exposition of the development of group representation theory by Frobe-
nius and other pioneers, see the survey articles of Hawkins [54–56].

Exercises for Chap. 2

1. (a) Start with n coins heads up. Choose a coin at random (each equally likely)
and turn it over. Do this a total of ` times. What is the probability that all
coins will have heads up? (Don’t solve this from scratch; rather use some
previous results.)
(b) Same as (a), except now compute the probability that all coins have tails up.
(c) Same as (a), but now we turn over two coins at a time.
2. (a) (difficult) (*) Let Cn;k be the subgraph of the cube Cn spanned by all vertices
of Cn with k  1 or k 1’s (so the edges of Cn;k consist
  of all edges of Cn that
connect two vertices of Cn;k ; there are a total of k nk edges). Show that the
characteristic polynomial of A D A.Cn;k / is given by

n n Y
k
n n
det.A  xI / D ˙x .k /.k1/ .x 2  i.n  2k C i C 1//.ki /.ki 1/ ;
i D1

n
where we set 1 D 0.
(b) Find the number of closed walks in Cn;k of length ` beginning and ending
with a fixed vertex v.
3. (unsolved and unrelated to the text) Let n D 2k C 1. Does the graph Cn;kC1 of
Problem 2 above have a Hamiltonian cycle, i.e., a closed path that contains every
vertex exactly once? A closed path in a graph G is a closed walk that does not
repeat any vertices except at the last step.
4. Let G be the graph with vertex set Zn2 (the same as the n-cube) and with edge
set defined as follows: fu; vg is an edge of G if u and v differ in exactly two
coordinates (i.e., if !.u; v/ D 2). What are the eigenvalues of G?
5. This problem is devoted to the graph Zn with vertex set Zn (the cyclic group of
order n, with elements 0; 1; : : : ; n  1 under the operation of addition modulo
n) and edges consisting of all pairs fi; i C 1g (with i C 1 computed in Zn , so
.n  1/ C 1 D 0). The graph Zn is called an n-cycle. We will develop properties
of its adjacency matrix analogously to what was done for the n-cube Cn . It will
be necessary to work over the complex numbers C. Recall that there are exactly n
complex numbers z (called nth roots of unity) satisfying zn D 1. They are given
by  0 D 1;  1 D ;  2 ; : : : ;  n1 , where  D e 2 i=n .
(a) Draw the graphs Z3 , Z4 , and Z5 .
Exercises for Chap. 2 19

(b) Let V be the complex vector space of all functions f W Zn ! C. What is the
dimension of V?
(c) (*) If k 2 Z, then note that  k depends only on the value of k modulo n.
Hence if u 2 Zn then we can define  u by regarding u as an ordinary integer,
and the usual laws of exponents such as  uCv D  u  v (where u; v 2 Zn ) still
hold. For u 2 Zn define u 2 V by u .v/ D  uv . Let B D fu W u 2 Zn g.
Show that B is a basis for V.
(d) Given   Zn and f 2 V, define ˆ f 2 V by
X
ˆ f .v/ D f .v C w/:
w2

Show that the eigenvectors

P of ˆ are the functions u , with corresponding
eigenvalue u D w2  uw .
(e) Let
D f1; n  1g  Zn . Define fu 2 V by fu .v/ D ıuv . Let F D
ffu W u 2 Zn g. It is clear that F is a basis for V (just as for Cn ). Show that the
matrix Œˆ
 of ˆ
with respect to the basis F is just A.Zn /, the adjacency
matrix of Zn .
(f) Show that the eigenvalues of A.Zn / are the numbers 2 cos. 2 j n
/, where 0 
j  n  1. What are the corresponding eigenvectors?
(g) How many closed walks in Zn are of length ` and start at 0? Give the
answers in the cases n D 4 and n D 6 without using trigonometric functions,
complex exponentials, etc.
.2/
(h) Let Zn be the graph with vertex set Zn and edges fi; j g for j  i D 1 or
.2/
j  i D 2. How many closed walks in Zn are of length ` and start at 0? Try
to express your answer in terms of trigonometric functions and not involving
complex numbers.
e n be the graph obtained from the n-cube graph Cn by adding an edge
6. Let C
between every vertex v and its antipode (the vertex which differs from v in all
n coordinates). Find the number of closed walks in C e n of length ` which begin
(and hence end) at the origin 0 D .0; 0; : : : ; 0/.
Chapter 3
Random Walks

Let G be a finite graph. We consider a random walk on the vertices of G of

the following type. Start at a vertex u. (The vertex u could be chosen randomly
according to some probability distribution or could be specified in advance.) Among
all the edges incident to u, choose one uniformly at random (i.e., if there are k edges
incident to u, then each of these edges is chosen with probability 1=k). Travel to the
vertex v at the other end of the chosen edge and continue as before from v. Readers
with some familiarity with probability theory will recognize this random walk as a
special case of a finite-state Markov chain. Many interesting questions may be asked
about such walks; the basic one is to determine the probability of being at a given
vertex after a given number ` of steps.
Suppose vertex u has degree du , i.e., there are du edges incident to u (counting
loops at u once only). Let M D M .G/ be the matrix whose rows and columns are
indexed by the vertex set fv1 ; : : : ; vp g of G and whose .u; v/-entry is given by

uv
Muv D ; (3.1)
du

where uv is the number of edges between u and v (which for simple graphs will
be 0 or 1). Thus Muv is just the probability that if one starts at u, then the next step
will be to v. We call M the probability matrix associated with G. An elementary
probability theory argument (equivalent to Theorem 1.1) shows that if ` is a positive
integer, then .M ` /uv is equal to the probability that one ends up at vertex v in ` steps
given that one has started at u. Suppose now that the starting vertex is not specified,
but rather we are given probabilities u summing to 1 and that we start at vertex
u with probability u . Let P be the row vector P D Œv1 ; : : : ; vp . Then again an
elementary argument shows that if P M ` D Œv1 ; : : : ; vp , then v is the probability
of ending up at v in ` steps (with the given starting distribution). By reasoning as
in Chap. 1, we see that if we know the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of M , then we
can compute the crucial probabilities .M ` /uv and u .

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 21

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 3,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
22 3 Random Walks

Since the matrix M is not the same as the adjacency matrix A, what does all this
have to do with adjacency matrices? The answer is that in one important case M is
just a scalar multiple of A. We say that the graph G is regular of degree d if each
du D d , i.e., each vertex is incident to d edges. In this case it’s easy to see that
M .G/ D d1 A.G/. Hence the eigenvectors Eu of M .G/ and A.G/ are the same,
and the eigenvalues are related by u .M / D d1 u .A/. Thus random walks on a
regular graph are closely related to the adjacency matrix of the graph.
3.1 Example. Consider a random walk on the n-cube Cn which begins at the
“origin” (the vector .0; : : : ; 0/). What is the probability p` that after ` steps
one is again at the origin? Before applying any formulas, note that after an
even (respectively, odd) number of steps, one must be at a vertex with an even
(respectively, odd) number of 1’s. Hence p` D 0 if ` is odd. Now note that Cn
is regular of degree n. Thus by (2.6), we have
1
u .M .Cn // D .n  2!.u// :
n
By (2.10) we conclude that
!
1 X n
n
p` D n ` .n  2i /` :
2 n i D0 i

Note that the above expression for p` does indeed reduce to 0 when ` is odd.
It is worth noting that even though the probability matrix M need not be a
symmetric matrix, nonetheless it has only real eigenvalues.
3.2 Theorem. Let G be a finite graph. Then the probability matrix M D M .G/ is
diagonalizable and has only real eigenvalues.

Proof. Since we are assuming that G is connected and has at least two vertices, it
follows that dv > 0 for every vertex v of G. Let D be the diagonal
p matrix whose
rows and columns are indexed by the vertices of G, with D vv D dv . Then
p uv 1
.DMD 1 /uv D du  p
du dv
uv
D p :
du dv

Hence DMD 1 is a symmetric matrix and thus has only real eigenvalues. But if
B and C are any p  p matrices with C invertible, then B and CBC 1 have the
same characteristic polynomial and hence the same eigenvalues. Therefore all the
eigenvalues of M are real. Moreover, B is diagonalizable if and only if CBC 1
is diagonalizable. (In fact, B and CBC 1 have the same Jordan canonical form.)
Since a symmetric matrix is diagonalizable, it follows that M is also diagonalizable.
t
u
3 Random Walks 23

Let us give one further example of the connection between linear algebra and
random walks on graphs. Let u and v be vertices of a connected graph G. Define the
access time or hitting time H.u; v/ to be the expected number of steps that a random
walk (as defined above) starting at u takes to reach v for the first time. Thus if the
probability is pn that we reach v for the first time in n steps, then by definition of
expectation we have X
H.u; v/ D npn : (3.2)
n1

Conceivably this sum could be infinite, though we will see below that this is not the
case. Note that H.v; v/ D 0.
As an example, suppose that G has three vertices u; v; w with an edge between
u and w and another edge between w and v. We can compute H.u; v/ as follows.
After one step we will be at w. Then with probability 12 we will step to v and with
probability 12 back to u. Hence [why?]

1 1
H.u; v/ D  2 C .2 C H.u; v//: (3.3)
2 2
Solving this linear equation gives H.u; v/ D 4.
We want to give a formula for the access time H.u; v/ in terms of linear
algebra. The proof requires some basic results on eigenvalues and eigenvectors of
nonnegative matrices, which we will explain and then state without proof. An r  r
real matrix B is called nonnegative if every entry is nonnegative. We say that B is
irreducible if it is not the 1  1 matrix Œ0 and if there does not exist a permutation
matrix P (a matrix with one 1 in every row and column, and all other entries 0)
such that

C D
PBP 1 D ;
0 E
where C and E are square matrices of size greater than zero. For instance, the
adjacency matrix A and probability matrix M of a graph G are irreducible if and
only if G is connected and is not an isolated vertex (i.e., a vertex v incident to no
edges, not even a loop from v to itself). We now state without proof a version of
the Perron–Frobenius theorem. There are some other parts of the Perron–Frobenius
theorem that we don’t need here and are omitted.
3.3 Theorem. Let B be a nonnegative irreducible square matrix. If  is the
maximum absolute value of the eigenvalues of B, then  > 0, and there is
an eigenvalue equal to . Moreover, there is an eigenvector for  (unique up to
multiplication by a positive real number) all of whose entries are positive.
Now let M be the probability matrix defined by (3.1). Let M Œv denote M with
the row and column indexed by v deleted. Thus if G has p vertices, then M Œv is
a .p  1/  .p  1/ matrix. Let T Œv be the column vector of length p  1 whose
rows are indexed by the vertices w ¤ v, with T Œvw D .w; v/=dw . Write Ip1 for
the identity matrix of size p  1.
24 3 Random Walks

3.4 Theorem. The matrix Ip1  M Œv is invertible, and

H.u; v/ D ..Ip1  M Œv/2 T Œv/u ; (3.4)

the u-entry of the column vector .Ip1  M Œv/2 T Œv.

Proof. We first give a “formal” argument and then justify its validity. The probabil-
ity that when we take n steps from u, we never reach v and end up at some vertex
w is .M Œvn /uw [why?]. The probability that once we reach w the next step is to v is
.w; v/=dw . Hence by definition of expectation we have
XX .w; v/
H.u; v/ D .n C 1/ .M Œvn /uw : (3.5)
n0
d w
w¤v

We claim that if x is a complex number satisfying jxj < 1, then

X
.n C 1/x n D .1  x/2 : (3.6)
n0

This identity is a simple exercise in calculus.

P For instance, we can compute the
coefficient of x n in the product .1  x/2 n0 .n C 1/x n . We can also differentiate
the familiar identity
X 1
xn D : (3.7)
n0
1  x

Another proof is obtained by expanding .1  x/2 by the binomial theorem for the
exponent 2. Convergence for jxj < 1 follows for example from the corresponding
result for (3.7).
Let us “blindly” apply (3.6) to (3.5). We obtain
X .w; v/
H.u; v/ D ..Ip1  M Œv/2 /uw
dw
w¤v

D ..Ip1  M Œv/2 T Œv/u ; (3.8)

as claimed.
It remains to justify ourPderivation of (3.8). For an arbitrary real (or complex)
P r r
matrix B, we can define n0 .n C 1/B n entry-wise, that is, we set n0 .n C 1/
B n D C if
X
.n C 1/.B n /ij D Cij
n0

for all i and j indexing the rows and columns of B and C .

3 Random Walks 25

It is straightforward to verify by induction on m the identity

 
.Ir  B/2 Ir C 2B C 3B 2 C    C mB m1 D Ir  .m C 1/B m C mB m1 : (3.9)

Suppose that B is diagonalizable and that all eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; r of B satisfy

jj j < 1. Note that our proof of (1.1) extends to any diagonalizable matrix. (The
matrix U need not be orthogonal, but this is irrelevant to the proof.) Hence

.B n /ij D c1 n1 C    C cr nr ;

where c1 ; : : : ; cr are complex numbers (independent of n). Hence from (3.9) we see
that the limit as m ! 1 of the right-hand side approaches Ir . It follows [why?] that
P 2
n0 .n C 1/B converges to .Ir  B/ .
n

NOTE. The above argument shows that Ir  B is indeed invertible. This fact is also
an immediate consequence of the hypothesis that all eigenvalues of B have absolute
value less than one, since in particular there is no eigenvalue  D 1.
From the discussion above, it remains to show that M Œv is diagonalizable, with
all eigenvalues of absolute value less than one. The diagonalizability of M Œv is
shown in exactly the same way as for M in Theorem 3.2. (Thus we see also that
M Œv has real eigenvalues, though we don’t need this fact here.) It remains to show
that the eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p1 of M Œv satisfy jj j < 1. We would like to apply
Theorem 3.3 to the matrix M Œv, but this matrix might not be irreducible since the
graph G v (defined by deleting from G the vertex v and all incident edges) need not
be connected or may be just an isolated vertex. If G  v has connected components
H1 ; : : : ; Hm , then we can order the vertices of G  v so that M Œv has the block
structure
2 3
N1 0  0
6 0 N2    0 7
6 7
M Œv D 6 :: 7;
4 : 5
0 0    Nm

where each Ni is irreducible or is the 1  1 matrix Œ0 (corresponding to Hi being

an isolated vertex). The eigenvalues of M Œv are the eigenvalues of the Ni ’s.
We need to show that each eigenvalue of Ni has absolute value less than one. If
Ni D Œ0 then the only eigenvalue is 0, so we may assume that Hi is not an isolated
vertex. Suppose that Hi has k vertices, so Ni is a k  k matrix. Let i be the largest
real eigenvalue of Ni , so by Theorem 3.3 all eigenvalues  of Ni satisfy jj  i .
Let U D Œu1 ; : : : ; uk  be an eigenvector for i with positive entries (which exists by
Theorem 3.3). We regard U as a column vector. Let V be the row vector of length
k of all 1’s. Consider the matrix product V Ni U . On the one hand we have

V Ni U D V .i U / D i .u1 C    C uk /: (3.10)

26 3 Random Walks

On the other hand, if j denotes the j th column sum of Ni , then

V Ni U D Œ1 ; : : : ; k U D 1 u1 C    C k uk : (3.11)

Now every j satisfies 0  j  1, and at least one h satisfies h < 1 [why?].

Since each uj > 0, it follows from (3.11) that V Ni U < u1 C    C uk . Comparing
with (3.10) gives i < 1.
Since the eigenvalues of M Œv are just the eigenvalues of the Ni ’s, we see that
all eigenvalues  of M Œv satisfy jj < 1. This completes the proof of Theorem 3.4.
t
u

3.5 Example. Let G be the graph of Fig. 3.1 with v D v4 . Then

2 3
1 1 1
63 0
6 3 377
61 1 17
6 0 7
64 27
M D6
6
4 7;
60 1 177
6 0 7
6 2 27
41 1 1 5
0
4 2 4
2 3
2 1
6 3  07
6 3 7
6 1 17
I3  M Œv D 6
64 1  7 ;
6 477
4 1 5
0  1
2
2 3
55 13 17
6 16 6 24 7
6 7
6 13 7 11 7
.I3  M Œv/2 D6
6 8
7;
6 3 12 7
7
4 17 11 13 5
16 6 8
2 3 2 3
1 31
637 6 12 7
6 7 6 7
6 7
2 6 1 7
6 13 7
.I3  M Œv/ 6 7 D 6 7
6 6 7:
627 6 7
415 4 25 5
2 12

Thus H.v1 ; v/ D 31=12, H.v2 ; v/ D 13=6, and H.v3 ; v/ D 25=12.

Exercises for Chap. 3 27

Fig. 3.1 A graph for v2

Example 3.5
v3
v1

v4

P
n0 .n C 1/B converges when all
n
NOTE. The method used to prove that
eigenvalues of B have absolute value less than one can be extended, with a little
more work (mostly
P concerned with non-diagonalizability), to show the following.
Let F .x/ D n0 an x n be a power series with complex coefficients an . Let ˛ > 0
be such that F .x/ converges whenever jxj < ˛. Let B be a square matrix (over the
P numbers) whose eigenvalues  all satisfy jj < ˛. Then the matrix power
complex
series n0 an B n converges in the entry-wise sense described above.

Notes for Chap. 3

Random walks on graphs is a vast subject, of which we have barely scratched the
surface. Two typical questions considerably deeper than what we have considered
are the following: how rapidly does a random walk approach the stationary
distribution of Exercise 1? Assuming G is connected, what is the expected number
of steps needed to visit every vertex? For a nice survey of random walks in graphs,
see Lovász [71]. The topic of matrix power series is part of the subject of matrix
analysis. For further information, see for instance Chap. 5 of the text by Horn
and Johnson [58]. Our proof of Theorem 3.4 is somewhat “naive,” avoiding the
development of the theory of matrix norms.

Exercises for Chap. 3

1. Let G be a (finite) graph with vertices v1 ; : : : ; vp . Assume that some power of

the probability matrix M .G/ defined by (3.1) has positive entries. (It’s not hard
to see that this is equivalent to G being connected and containing at least one
cycle of odd length, but you don’t have to show this.) Let dk denote the degree
(number of incident edges) of vertex vk . Let D D d1 C d2 C    C dp D 2q  r,
where G has q edges and r loops. Start at any vertex of G and do a random walk
on the vertices of G as defined in the text. Let pk .`/ denote the probability of
28 3 Random Walks

ending up at vertex vk after ` steps. Assuming the Perron–Frobenius theorem

(Theorem 3.3), show that

lim pk .`/ D dk =D:

`!1

This limiting probability distribution on the set of vertices of G is called the

stationary distribution of the random walk.
2. (a) Let G be a finite graph (allowing loops and multiple edges). Suppose that
there is some integer ` > 0 such that the number of walks of length ` from
any fixed vertex u to any fixed vertex v is independent of u and v. Show that
G has the same number k of edges between any two vertices (including k
loops at each vertex).
(b) Let G be a finite graph (allowing loops and multiple edges) with the
following property. There is some integer ` > 0 such that if we start at
any vertex of G and do a random walk (in the sense of the text) for ` steps,
then we are equally likely to be at any vertex. In other words, if G has p
vertices then the probability that the walk ends at vertex v is exactly 1=p
for any v. Show that we have the same conclusion as (a), i.e., G has the
same number k of edges between any two vertices.
3. (a) Let P .x/ be a nonzero polynomial with real coefficients. Show that the
following two conditions are equivalent.
• There exists a nonzero polynomial Q.x/ with real coefficients such that
all coefficients of P .x/Q.x/ are nonnegative.
• There does not exist a real number a > 0 such that P .a/ D 0.
(b) (difficult) Let G be a connected finite graph, and let M be the probability
matrix defined by (3.1). Show that the following two conditions are
equivalent.
• There exists a probability distribution P on P (so P .k/ is the probability
of choosing k 2 P) such that if we first choose k from the distribution
P and then start at any vertex of G and walk exactly k steps according
to the random walk described in the text, then we are equally likely to
be at any vertex of G.
• The graph G is regular, and no positive real number except 1 is an
eigenvalue of M .
4. (*) Fix 0  p  1. Start at the vertex .0; 0; : : : ; 0/ of the n-cube Cn . Walk
along the edges of the cube according to the following rule: after each unit
of time, either stay where you are with probability p or step to a neighboring
vertex randomly (uniformly). Thus the probability of stepping to a particular
neighboring vertex is .1  p/=n. Find a formula for the probability P .`/ that
Exercises for Chap. 3 29

after ` units of time you are again at .0; 0; : : : ; 0/. For instance, P .0/ D 1 and
P .1/ D p. Express your formula as a finite sum.
5. This problem is not directly related to the text but is a classic problem with a
very clever elegant solution. Let G be the graph with vertex set Zn (the integers
modulo n), with an edge between i and i C 1 for all i 2 Zn . Hence G is just
an n-cycle. Start at vertex 0 and do a random walk as in the text, so from vertex
i walk to i  1 or i C 1 with probability 1=2 each. For each i 2 Zn , find the
probability that vertex i is the last vertex to be visited for the first time. In other
words, at the first time we arrive at vertex i , we have visited all the other vertices
at least once each. For instance, p0 D 0 (if n > 1), since vertex 0 is the first
vertex to be visited.
6. (a) Show that if u and v are two vertices of a connected graph G, then we need
not have H.u; v/ D H.v; u/, where H denotes access time. What if G is
also assumed to be regular?
(b) (difficult) For each n  1, what is the maximum possible value of H.u; v/
H.v; u/ for two vertices u; v of a connected simple graph with n vertices?
7. (*) Let u and v be distinct vertices of the complete graph Kn . Show that
H.u; v/ D n  1.
8. (*) Let Pn be the graph with vertices v1 ; : : : ; vn and an edge between vi and
vi C1 for all 1  i  n  1. Show that H.v1 ; vn / D n2 . What about H.vi ; vj /
for any i ¤ j ? What if we also have an edge between v1 and vn ?
9. Let Kmn be a complete bipartite graph with vertex bipartition .A1 ; A2 /, where
#A1 D m and #A2 D n. Find the access time H.u; v/ between every pair of
distinct vertices. There will be two inequivalent cases: both u and v lie in the
same Ai , or they lie in different Ai ’s.
10. (*) For any three vertices u; v; w of a graph G, show that

H.u; v/ C H.v; w/ C H.w; u/ D H.u; w/ C H.w; v/ C H.v; u/:

11. Let k  0, and let u and v be vertices of a graph G. Define the kth binomial 
moment Hk .u; v/ of the access time to be the average value (expectation) of nk ,
where n is the number of steps that a random walk starting at u takes to reach v
for the first time. Thus in the notation of (3.2) we have
!
X n
H.u; v/ D pn :
n1
k

Let x be an indeterminate. Following the notation of (3.4), show that

X
Hk .u; v/x k D ..Ip1  .x C 1/M Œv/1 T Œv/u :
k0
30 3 Random Walks

12. (*) Generalizing Exercise 7 above, show that for any two distinct vertices u; v
of the complete graph Kn , the kth binomial moment of the access time is given
by Hk .u; v/ D .n  1/.n  2/k1 , k  1. (When n D 2 and k D 1, we should
set 00 D 1.)
Chapter 4
The Sperner Property

In this chapter we consider a surprising application of certain adjacency matrices

to some problems in extremal set theory. An important role will also be played
by finite groups in Chap. 5, which is a continuation of the present chapter. In
general, extremal set theory is concerned with finding (or estimating) the most or
least number of sets satisfying given set-theoretic or combinatorial conditions. For
example, a typical easy problem in extremal set theory is the following: what is the
most number of subsets of an n-element set with the property that any two of them
intersect? (Can you solve this problem?) The problems to be considered here are
most conveniently formulated in terms of partially ordered sets or posets for short.
Thus we begin with discussing some basic notions concerning posets.
4.1 Definition. A poset P is a finite set, also denoted P , together with a binary
relation denoted  satisfying the following axioms:
(P1) (reflexivity) x  x for all x 2 P
(P2) (antisymmetry) If x  y and y  x, then x D y
(P3) (transitivity) If x  y and y  z, then x  z
One easy way to obtain a poset is the following. Let P be any collection of sets.
If x; y 2 P , then define x  y in P if x  y as sets. It is easy to see that this
definition of  makes P into a poset. If P consists of all subsets of an n-element
set S , then P is called a (finite) boolean algebra of rank n and is denoted by BS . If
S D f1; 2; : : : ; ng, then we denote BS simply by Bn . Boolean algebras will play an
important role throughout this chapter and the next.
There is a simple way to represent small posets pictorially. The Hasse diagram
of a poset P is a planar drawing, with elements of P drawn as dots. If x < y in
P (i.e., x  y and x ¤ y), then y is drawn “above” x (i.e., with a larger vertical
coordinate). An edge is drawn between x and y if y covers x, i.e., x < y and no
element z satisfies x < z < y. We then write x É y or y Ê x. By the transitivity
property (P3), all the relations of a finite poset are determined by the cover relations,

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 31

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 4,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
32 4 The Sperner Property

so the Hasse diagram determines P . (This is not true for infinite posets; for instance,
the real numbers R with their usual order is a poset with no cover relations.) The
Hasse diagram of the boolean algebra B3 looks like

123

12 13 23

1 2 3

We say that two posets P and Q are isomorphic if there is a bijection (one-to-one
and onto function) 'W P ! Q such that x  y in P if and only if '.x/  '.y/ in Q.
Thus one can think that two posets are isomorphic if they differ only in the names
of their elements. This is exactly analogous to the notion of isomorphism of groups,
rings, etc. It is an instructive exercise (see Exercise 1) to draw Hasse diagrams of the
one poset of order (number of elements) one (up to isomorphism), the two posets
of order two, the five posets of order three, and the sixteen posets of order four.
More ambitious readers can try the 63 posets of order five, the 318 of order six,
the 2,045 of order seven, the 16,999 of order eight, the 183,231 of order nine,
the 2,567,284 of order ten, the 46,749,427 of order eleven, the 1,104,891,746 of
order twelve, the 33,823,827,452 of order thirteen, the 1,338,193,159,771 of order
fourteen, the 68,275,077,901,156 of order fifteen, and the 4,483,130,665,195,087 of
order sixteen. Beyond this the number is not currently known.
A chain C in a poset is a totally ordered subset of P , i.e., if x; y 2 C then
either x  y or y  x in P . A finite chain is said to have length n if it has n C 1
elements. Such a chain thus has the form x0 < x1 <    < xn . We say that a finite
poset is graded of rank n if every maximal chain has length n. (A chain is maximal
if it’s contained in no larger chain.) For instance, the boolean algebra Bn is graded
of rank n [why?]. A chain y0 < y1 <    < yj is said to be saturated if each
yi C1 covers yi . Such a chain need not be maximal since there can be elements of
P less than y0 or greater than yj . If P is graded of rank n and x 2 P , then we say
that x has rank j , denoted .x/ D j , if the largest saturated chain of P with top
element x has length j . Thus [why?] if we let Pj D fx 2 P W .x/ D j g, then P
is a disjoint union P D P0 [P  1 [    [P
 n , and every maximal chain of P has the
form x0 < x1 <    < xn where .xj / D j . We call Pi the i th level of P . We write
pj D #Pj , the number of elements of P of rank j . For example, if P D Bn then
.x/ D jxj (the cardinality of x as a set) and
4 The Sperner Property 33

!
n
pj D #fx  f1; 2; : : : ; ngW jxj D j g D :
j

(Note that we use both jS j and #S for the cardinality of a finite set S .) If a graded
poset P of rank n has pi elements of rank i , then define the rank-generating function

X
n X
F .P; q/ D pi q i D q .x/ :
i D0 x2P

For instance, F .Bn ; q/ D .1 C q/ [why?].

n

We say that a graded poset P of rank n (always assumed to be finite) is rank-

symmetric if pi D pni for 0  i  n and rank-unimodal if p0  p1      pj 
pj C1  pj C2      pn for some 0  j  n. If P is both rank-symmetric and
rank-unimodal, then we clearly have

p0  p1      pm  pmC1      pn ; if n D 2m;
p0  p1      pm D pmC1  pmC2      pn ; if n D 2m C 1 :

We also say that the sequence p0 ; p1 ; : : : ; pn itself or the polynomial F .q/ D p0 C

p1 q C    C pn q n is symmetric or unimodal, as the case may be. For instance, Bn is
rank-symmetric  and
 rank-unimodal,
 since it is well known (and easy to prove) that
the sequence n0 ; n1 ; : : : ; nn (the nth row of Pascal’s triangle) is symmetric and
unimodal. Thus the polynomial .1 C q/n is symmetric and unimodal.
A few more definitions, and then finally some results! An antichain in a poset P
is a subset A of P for which no two elements are comparable, i.e., we can never have
x; y 2 A and x < y. For instance, in a graded poset P the “levels” Pj are antichains
[why?]. We will be concerned with the problem of finding the largest antichain in
a poset. Consider for instance the boolean algebra Bn . The problem of finding the
largest antichain in Bn is clearly equivalent to the following problem in extremal set
theory: find the largest collection of subsets of an n-element set such that no element
of the collection contains another. A good guess would be to take all the subsets of
cardinality
 n  bn=2c (where bxc denotes the greatest integer  x), giving a total of
bn=2c
sets in all. But how can we actually prove there is no larger collection? Such
a proof was first given by Emanuel Sperner in 1927 and is known as Sperner’s
theorem. We will give three proofs of Sperner’s theorem in this chapter: one proof
uses linear algebra and will be applied to certain other situations; the second proof
is an elegant combinatorial argument due to David Lubell in 1966; while the third
proof is another combinatorial argument closely related to the linear algebra proof.
We present the last two proofs for their “cultural value.” Our extension of Sperner’s
theorem to certain other situations will involve the following crucial definition.
4.2 Definition. Let P be a graded poset of rank n. We say that P has the Sperner
property or is a Sperner poset if
34 4 The Sperner Property

maxf#AW A is an antichain of P g D maxf#Pi W 0  i  ng:

In other words, no antichain is larger than the largest level Pi .

Thus Sperner’s theorem is equivalent to saying that Bn has the Sperner property.
Note that if P has the Sperner property then there may still be antichains of
maximum cardinality other than the biggest Pi ; there just can’t be any bigger
antichains.
4.3 Example. A simple example of a graded poset that fails to satisfy the Sperner
property is the following:

We now will discuss a simple combinatorial condition which guarantees that

certain graded posets P are Sperner. We define an order-matching from Pi to Pi C1
to be a one-to-one function W Pi ! Pi C1 satisfying x < .x/ for all x 2 Pi .
Clearly if such an order-matching exists then pi  pi C1 (since  is one-to-one).
Easy examples (such as the diagram above) show that the converse is false, i.e.,
if pi  pi C1 then there need not exist an order-matching from Pi to Pi C1 . We
similarly define an order-matching from Pi to Pi 1 to be a one-to-one function
W Pi ! Pi 1 satisfying .x/ < x for all x 2 Pi .
4.4 Proposition. Let P be a graded poset of rank n. Suppose there exist an integer
0  j  n and order-matchings

P0 ! P1 ! P2 !    ! Pj Pj C1 Pj C2  Pn : (4.1)

Then P is rank-unimodal and Sperner.

Proof. Since order-matchings are one-to-one it is clear that

p0  p1      pj  pj C1  pj C2      pn :

Hence P is rank-unimodal.
Define a graph G as follows. The vertices of G are the elements of P . Two
vertices x; y are connected by an edge if one of the order-matchings  in the
statement of the proposition satisfies .x/ D y. (Thus G is a subgraph of the
Hasse diagram of P .) Drawing a picture will convince you that G consists of a
disjoint union of paths, including single-vertex paths not involved in any of the
order-matchings. The vertices of each of these paths form a chain in P . Thus we
have partitioned the elements of P into disjoint chains. Since P is rank-unimodal
with biggest level Pj , all of these chains must pass through Pj [why?]. Thus the
4 The Sperner Property 35

number of chains is exactly pj . Any antichain A can intersect each of these chains
at most once, so the cardinality jAj of A cannot exceed the number of chains, i.e.,
jAj  pj . Hence by definition P is Sperner. t
u

It is now finally time to bring some linear algebra into the picture. For any
(finite) set S , we let RS denote the real vector space consisting of all formal linear
combinations (with real coefficients) of elements of S . Thus S is a basis for RS , and
in fact we could have simply defined RS to be the real vector space with basis S .
The next lemma relates the combinatorics we have just discussed to linear algebra
and will allow us to prove that certain posets are Sperner by the use of linear algebra
(combined with some finite group theory).
4.5 Lemma. Suppose there exists a linear transformation U W RPi ! RPi C1 (U
stands for “up”) satisfying:
• U is one-to-one.
• For all x 2 Pi , U.x/ is a linear combination of elements y 2 Pi C1 satisfying
x < y. (We then call U an order-raising operator.)
Then there exists an order-matching W Pi ! Pi C1 .
Similarly, suppose there exists a linear transformation U W RPi ! RPi C1
satisfying:
• U is onto.
• U is an order-raising operator.
Then there exists an order-matching W Pi C1 ! Pi .

Proof. Suppose U W RPi ! RPi C1 is a one-to-one order-raising operator. Let ŒU 

denote the matrix of U with respect to the bases Pi of RPi and Pi C1 of RPi C1 . Thus
the rows of ŒU  are indexed by the elements y1 ; : : : ; ypi C1 of Pi C1 (in some order)
and the columns by the elements x1 ; : : : ; xpi of Pi . Since U is one-to-one, the rank
of ŒU  is equal to pi (the number of columns). Since the row rank of a matrix equals
its column rank, ŒU  must have pi linearly independent rows. Say we have labelled
the elements of Pi C1 so that the first pi rows of ŒU  are linearly independent.
Let A D .aij / be the pi  pi matrix whose rows are the first pi rows of ŒU .
(Thus A is a square submatrix of ŒU .) Since the rows of A are linearly independent,
we have
X
det.A/ D ˙a1 .1/    api .pi / ¤ 0;

where the sum is over all permutations of 1; : : : ; pi . Thus some term ˙a1 .1/   
api .pi / of the above sum is nonzero. Since U is order-raising, this means that
[why?] yk > x .k/ for 1  k  pi . Hence the map W Pi ! Pi C1 defined by
.xk / D y 1 .k/ is an order-matching, as desired.
36 4 The Sperner Property

The case when U is onto rather than one-to-one is proved by a completely

analogous argument. It can also be deduced from the one-to-one case by considering
the transpose of the matrix ŒU . t
u

NOTE. Although it does not really help in understanding the theory, it is interesting
to regard a one-to-one order-raising operator as a “quantum order-matching.” Rather
than choosing a single element y D .x/ that is matched with x 2 Pi , we choose
P possible elements y 2 Pi C1 satisfying y > x at the same time. If U.x/ D
all
y>x cy y (where cy 2 R), then we are choosing y with “weight” cy . As explained
in the proof of Lemma 4.5 above, we “break the symmetry” and obtain a single
matched element .x/ by choosing some nonvanishing term in the expansion of a
determinant.
We now want to apply Proposition 4.4 and Lemma 4.5 to the boolean algebra
Bn . For each 0  i < n, we need to define a linear transformation Ui W R.Bn /i !
R.Bn /i C1 , and then prove it has the desired properties. We simply define Ui to be
the simplest possible order-raising operator, namely, for x 2 .Bn /i , let
X
Ui .x/ D y: (4.2)
y2.Bn /i C1
y>x

Note that since .Bn /i is a basis for R.Bn /i , (4.2) does indeed define a unique linear
transformation Ui W R.Bn /i ! R.Bn /i C1 . By definition Ui is order-raising; we want
to show that Ui is one-to-one for i < n=2 and onto for i  n=2. There are several
ways to show this using only elementary linear algebra; we will give what is perhaps
the simplest proof, though it is quite tricky. The idea is to introduce “dual” or
“adjoint” operators Di W R.Bn /i ! R.Bn /i 1 to the Ui ’s (D stands for “down”),
defined by
X
Di .y/ D x; (4.3)
x2.Bn /i 1
x<y

for all y 2 .Bn /i . Let ŒUi  denote the matrix of Ui with respect to the bases .Bn /i
and .Bn /i C1 , and similarly let ŒDi  denote the matrix of Di with respect to the bases
.Bn /i and .Bn /i 1 . A key observation which we will use later is that

ŒDi C1  D ŒUi t ; (4.4)

i.e., the matrix ŒDi C1  is the transpose of the matrix ŒUi  [why?]. Now let
Ii W R.Bn /i ! R.Bn /i denote the identity transformation on R.Bn /i , i.e., Ii .u/ D
u for all u 2 R.Bn /i . The next lemma states (in linear algebraic terms) the
fundamental combinatorial property of Bn which we need. For this lemma set
Un D 0 and D0 D 0 (the 0 linear transformation between the appropriate vector
spaces).
4 The Sperner Property 37

4.6 Lemma. Let 0  i  n. Then

Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di D .n  2i /Ii : (4.5)

(Linear transformations are multiplied right-to-left, so AB.u/ D A.B.u//.)

Proof. Let x 2 .Bn /i . We need to show that if we apply the left-hand side of (4.5)
to x, then we obtain .n  2i /x. We have
0 1
B X C
Di C1 Ui .x/ D Di C1 @ yA
jyjDi C1
xy
X X
D z:
jyjDi C1 jzjDi
xy zy

If x; z 2 .Bn /i satisfy jx \ zj < i  1, then there is no y 2 .Bn /i C1 such that x y

and z y. Hence the coefficient of z in Di C1 Ui .x/ when it is expanded in terms of
the basis .Bn /i is 0. If jx \ zj D i  1, then there is one such y, namely, y D x [ z.
Finally if x D z then y can be any element of .Bn /i C1 containing x, and there are
n  i such y in all. It follows that
X
Di C1 Ui .x/ D .n  i /x C z: (4.6)
jzjDi
jx\zjDi 1

By exactly analogous reasoning (which the reader should check), we have for x 2
.Bn /i that X
Ui 1 Di .x/ D ix C z: (4.7)
jzjDi
jx\zjDi 1

Subtracting (4.7) from (4.6) yields .Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di /.x/ D .n  2i /x, as desired.

t
u

4.7 Theorem. The operator Ui defined above is one-to-one if i < n=2 and is onto
if i  n=2.

Proof. Recall that ŒDi  D ŒUi 1 t . From linear algebra we know that a (rectangular)
matrix times its transpose is positive semidefinite (or just semidefinite for short) and
hence has nonnegative (real) eigenvalues. By Lemma 4.6 we have

Di C1 Ui D Ui 1 Di C .n  2i /Ii :

Thus the eigenvalues of Di C1 Ui are obtained from the eigenvalues of Ui 1 Di

by adding n  2i . Since we are assuming that n  2i > 0, it follows that the
38 4 The Sperner Property

eigenvalues of Di C1 Ui are strictly positive. Hence Di C1 Ui is invertible (since it has

no 0 eigenvalues). But this implies that Ui is one-to-one [why?], as desired.
The case i  n=2 is done by a “dual” argument (or in fact can be deduced directly
from the i < n=2 case by using the fact that the poset Bn is “self-dual,” though we
will not go into this). Namely, from the fact that

Ui Di C1 D Di C2 Ui C1 C .2i C 2  n/Ii C1

we get that Ui Di C1 is invertible, so now Ui is onto, completing the proof. t

u

Combining Proposition 4.4, Lemma 4.5, and Theorem 4.7, we obtain the famous
theorem of Sperner.
4.8 Corollary. The boolean algebra Bn has the Sperner property.
It is natural to ask whether there is a less indirect proof of Corollary 4.8. In fact,
several nice proofs are known; we first give one due to David Lubell, mentioned
before Definition 4.2.
Lubell’s Proof of Sperner’s Theorem. First we count the total number of maximal
chains ; D x0 < x1 <    < xn D f1; : : : ; ng in Bn . There are n choices for x1 ,
then n  1 choices for x2 , etc., so there are nŠ maximal chains in all. Next we count
the number of maximal chains x0 < x1 <    < xi D x <    < xn which contain
a given element x of rank i . There are i choices for x1 , then i  1 choices for x2 ,
up to one choice for xi . Similarly there are n  i choices for xi C1 , then n  i  1
choices for xi C2 , etc., up to one choice for xn . Hence the number of maximal chains
containing x is i Š.n  i /Š.
Now let A be an antichain. If x 2 A, then let Cx be the set of maximal chains
of Bn which contain x. Since A is an antichain, the sets Cx , x 2 A are pairwise
disjoint. Hence
ˇ ˇ
ˇ[ ˇ X
ˇ ˇ
ˇ Cx ˇ D jCx j
ˇ ˇ
x2A x2A
X
D ..x//Š.n  .x//Š:
x2A

Since the total number of maximal chains in the Cx ’s cannot exceed the total number
nŠ of maximal chains in Bn , we have
X
..x//Š.n  .x//Š  nŠ:
x2A

Divide both sides by nŠ to obtain

X 1
n
  1:
x2A .x/
4 The Sperner Property 39

n
Since i is maximized when i D bn=2c, we have
1 1
 n
  n
;
bn=2c .x/

for all x 2 A (or all x 2 Bn ). Thus

X 1
n   1;
x2A bn=2c

or equivalently, !
n
jAj  :
bn=2c
 n 
Since bn=2c
is the size of the largest level of Bn , it follows that Bn is Sperner. 
There is another nice way to show directly that Bn is Sperner, namely, by
constructing an explicit order-matching W .Bn /i ! .Bn /i C1 when i < n=2.
We will define  by giving an example. Let n D 21, i D 9, and S D
f3; 4; 5; 8; 12; 13; 17; 19; 20g. We want to define .S /. Let .a1 ; a2 ; : : : ; a21 / be a
sequence of ˙1’s, where ai D 1 if i 2 S and ai D 1 if i 62 S . For the set S above
we get the sequence (writing  for 1)

  111  1    11    1  11  :

Replace any two consecutive terms 1  with 0 0:

  1 1 0 0  0 0   1 0 0   0 0 1 0 0:

Ignore the 0’s and replace any two consecutive terms 1  with 0 0:

  1 0 0 0 0 0 0   0 0 0 0  0 0 1 0 0:

Continue:
  0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0  0 0 0 0  0 0 1 0 0:
At this stage no further replacement is possible. The nonzero terms consist of a
sequence of ’s followed by a sequence of 1’s. There is at least one  since i < n=2.
Let k be the position (coordinate) of the last ; here k D 16. Define .S / D
S [ fkg D S [ f16g. The reader can check that this procedure gives an order-
matching. In particular, why is  injective (one-to-one), i.e., why can we recover S
from .S /?
It can be checked that if we glue together the order-matchings .Bn /i ! .Bn /i C1
for i < n=2 just defined, along with an obvious dual construction .Bn /i ! .Bn /i 1
for i > n=2 then we obtain more than just a partition of Bn into saturated chains
passing through the middle level (n even) or middle two levels (n odd), as in the
40 4 The Sperner Property

proof of Proposition 4.4. We in fact have the additional property that these chains
are all symmetric, i.e., they begin at some level i  n=2 and end at level n  i .
Such a decomposition of a rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal graded poset P into
saturated chains is called a symmetric chain decomposition. A symmetric chain
decomposition implies that for any j  1, the largest size of a union of j antichains
is equal to the largest size of a union of j levels of P (Exercise 6). (The Sperner
property corresponds to the case j D 1.) It can be a challenging problem to decide
whether certain posets have a symmetric chain decomposition (e.g., Exercises 5(b)
and 6 in Chap. 5 and Exercise 6 in Chap. 6), though we will not discuss this topic
further here.
In view of the above elegant proof of Lubell and the explicit description of an
order-matching  W .Bn /i ! .Bn /i C1 , the reader may be wondering what was
the point of giving a rather complicated and indirect proof using linear algebra.
Admittedly, if all we could obtain from the linear algebra machinery we have
developed was just another proof of Sperner’s theorem, then it would have been
hardly worth the effort. But in the next chapter we will show how Theorem 4.7, when
combined with a little finite group theory, can be used to obtain many interesting
combinatorial results for which simple, direct proofs are not known.

Notes for Chap. 4

For further information on combinatorial aspects of partially ordered sets in general,

see Caspard–Leclerc–Monjardet [17], Fishburn [33], Stanley [107, Chap. 3], and
Trotter [113]. Sperner’s theorem (Corollary 4.8) was first proved by Sperner [100].
The elegant proof of Lubell appears in [72]. A general reference on the Sperner
property is the book by Engel [32]. For more general results on the combinatorics of
finite sets, see Anderson [1]. The linear algebraic approach to the Sperner property
discussed here is due independently to Pouzet [86] (further developed by Pouzet
and Rosenberg [87]) and Stanley [101, 103]. For further information on explicit
order-matchings, symmetric chain decompositions, etc., see the text [1] of Anderson
mentioned above.

Exercises for Chap. 4

1. Draw Hasse diagrams of the 16 nonisomorphic four-element posets. For a more

interesting challenge, draw also the 63 five-element posets. For those with lots of
time to kill, draw the 318 six-element posets, the 2,045 seven-element posets, the
16,999 eight-element posets, up to the 4,483,130,665,195,087 sixteen-element
posets.
2. (a) Let P be a finite poset and f W P ! P an order-preserving bijection, i.e., f
is a bijection (one-to-one and onto), and if x  y in P then f .x/  f .y/.
Exercises for Chap. 4 41

Show that f is an automorphism of P , i.e., f 1 is order-preserving. (Try to

use simple algebraic reasoning, though it’s not necessary to do so.)
(b) Show that the result of (a) need not be true if P is infinite.
3. Let F .q/ and G.q/ be symmetric unimodal polynomials with nonnegative
real coefficients. Show that F .q/G.q/ is also symmetric (easy) and unimodal
(harder).
4. Let q be a prime power, and let Fq denote the finite field with q elements.
Let V D Vn .q/ D Fnq , the n-dimensional vector space over Fq of n-tuples of
elements of Fq . Let Bn .q/ denote the poset of all subspaces of V , ordered by
inclusion. It’s easy to see that Bn .q/ is graded of rank n, the rank of a subspace
of V being its dimension.
(a) Draw the Hasse diagram of B3 .2/. (It has 16 elements.)
(b) (*) Show that the number of elements of Bn .q/ of rank k is given by the
q-binomial coefficient
!
n .q n  1/.q n1  1/    .q nkC1  1/
D :
k .q k  1/.q k1  1/    .q  1/

(c) (*) Show that Bn .q/ is rank-symmetric.

(d) Show that every element x 2 Bn .q/k covers .k/ D 1 C q C    C q k1
elements and is covered by .n-k/ D 1 C q C    C q nk1 elements.
(e) Define operators Ui W RBn .q/i ! RBn .q/i C1 and Di W RBn .q/i ! RBn .q/i 1
by X
Ui .x/ D y;
y2Bn .q/i C1
y>x
X
Di .x/ D z:
z2Bn .q/i 1
z<x

Show that
Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di D ..n-i/  .i//Ii :
(f) Deduce that Bn .q/ is rank-unimodal and Sperner.
5. (difficult) Let S1 ; S2 ; : : : ; Sk be finite sets with #S1 D #S2 D    D #Sk . Let P
be the poset of all sets T contained in some Si , ordered by inclusion. In symbols,

P D 2 S1 [ 2 S2 [    [ 2 Sk ;

where 2S denotes the set of subsets of S . Is P always rank-unimodal?

6. Let P be a rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal poset. Show that if P has a symmetric
chain decomposition, then for any j  1 the largest size of a union of j
antichains is equal to the largest size of a union of j levels of P .
Chapter 5
Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

Let us begin by reviewing some facts from group theory. Suppose that X is an n-
element set and that G is a group. We say that G acts on the set X if for every
element of G we associate a permutation (also denoted ) of X , such that for all
x 2 X and ;  2 G we have
..x// D . /.x/:
Thus [why?] an action of G on X is the same as a homomorphism 'W G ! SX ,
where SX denotes the symmetric group of all permutations of X . We sometimes
write  x instead of .x/.
5.1 Example. (a) Let the real number ˛ act on the xy-plane by rotation coun-
terclockwise around the origin by an angle of ˛ radians. It is easy to check
that this defines an action of the group R of real numbers (under addition) on
the xy-plane. The kernel of this action, i.e., the kernel of the homomorphism
'W R ! SR2 , is the cyclic subgroup of R generated by 2 .
(b) Now let ˛ 2 R act by translation by a distance ˛ to the right, i.e., adding .˛; 0/.
This yields a completely different action of R on the xy-plane. This time the
action is faithful, i.e., the kernel is the trivial subgroup f0g.
(c) Let X D fa; b; c; d g and G D Z2  Z2 D f.0; 0/; .0; 1/; .1; 0/; .1; 1/g. Let G
act as follows:
.0; 1/  a D b; .0; 1/  b D a; .0; 1/  c D c; .0; 1/  d D d;

.1; 0/  a D a; .1; 0/  b D b; .1; 0/  c D d; .1; 0/  d D c:

The reader should check that this does indeed define an action. In particular,
since .1; 0/ and .0; 1/ generate G, we don’t need to define the action of .0; 0/
and .1; 1/—they are uniquely determined.
(d) Let X and G be as in (c), but now define the action by

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 43

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 5,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
44 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

.0; 1/  a D b; .0; 1/  b D a; .0; 1/  c D d; .0; 1/  d D c;

.1; 0/  a D c; .1; 0/  b D d; .1; 0/  c D a; .1; 0/  d D b:

Again one can check that we have an action of Z2  Z2 on fa; b; c; d g. The two
actions of G D Z2  Z2 that we have just defined are quite different; for instance,
in the first action we have some elements of X fixed by some nonidentity element
of G (such as .0; 1/  c D c), while the second action fails to have this property. See
also Example 5.2(c, d) below for another fundamental way in which the two actions
differ.
Recall what is meant by an orbit of the action of a group G on a set X . Namely,
we say that two elements x; y of X are G-equivalent if .x/ D y for some 2 G.
The relation of G-equivalence is an equivalence relation, and the equivalence classes
are called orbits. Thus x and y are in the same orbit if .x/ D y for some 2 G.
The orbits form a partition of X , i.e, they are pairwise-disjoint, nonempty subsets of
X whose union is X . The orbit containing x is denoted Gx; this is sensible notation
since Gx consists of all elements .x/ where 2 G. Thus Gx D Gy if and only
if x and y are G-equivalent (i.e., in the same G-orbit). The set of all G-orbits is
denoted X=G.
5.2 Example. (a) In Example 5.1(a), the orbits are circles with center .0; 0/,
including the degenerate circle whose only point is .0; 0/.
(b) In Example 5.1(b), the orbits are horizontal lines. Note that although in (a) and
(b) the same group G acts on the same set X , the orbits are different.
(c) In Example 5.1(c), the orbits are fa; bg and fc; d g.
(d) In Example 5.1(d), there is only one orbit fa; b; c; d g. Again we have a situation
in which a group G acts on a set X in two different ways, with different orbits.
We wish to consider the situation where X D Bn , the boolean algebra of rank
n (so jBn j D 2n ). We begin by defining an automorphism of a poset P to be an
isomorphism 'W P ! P . (This definition is exactly analogous to the definition
of an automorphism of a group, ring, etc.) The set of all automorphisms of P
forms a group, denoted Aut.P / and called the automorphism group of P , under
the operation of composition of functions (just as is the case for groups, rings, etc.).
Now consider the case P D Bn . Any permutation of f1; : : : ; ng acts on Bn as
follows: if x D fi1 ; i2 ; : : : ; ik g 2 Bn , then

.x/ D f .i1 /; .i2 /; : : : ; .ik /g: (5.1)

This action of on Bn is an automorphism [why?]; in particular, if jxj D i , then

also j .x/j D i . Equation (5.1) defines an action of the symmetric group Sn of all
permutations of f1; : : : ; ng on Bn [why?]. (In fact, it is not hard to show that every
automorphism of Bn is of the form (5.1) for 2 Sn .) In particular, any subgroup
G of Sn acts on Bn via (5.1) (where we restrict to belong to G). In what follows
this action is always meant.
5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras 45

5.3 Example. Let n D 3, and let G be the subgroup of S3 with elements  and
.1; 2/. Here  denotes the identity permutation, and (using disjoint cycle notation)
.1; 2/ denotes the permutation which interchanges 1 and 2 and fixes 3. There are six
orbits of G (acting on B3 ). Writing, e.g., 13 as short for f1; 3g, the six orbits are f;g,
f1; 2g, f3g, f12g, f13; 23g, and f123g.
We now define the class of posets which will be of interest to us here. Later we
will give some special cases of particular interest.
Let G be a subgroup of Sn . Define the quotient poset Bn =G as follows. The
elements of Bn =G are the orbits of G. If o and o0 are two orbits, then define o  o0
in Bn =G if there exist x 2 o and y 2 o0 such that x  y in Bn . It’s easy to check
that this relation  is indeed a partial order.
5.4 Example. (a) Let n D 3 and G be the group of order two generated by the
cycle .1; 2/, as in Example 5.3. Then the Hasse diagram of B3 =G is shown
below, where each element (orbit) is labelled by one of its elements.

123

13 12

3 1

(b) Let n D 5 and G be the group of order five generated by the cycle .1; 2; 3; 4; 5/.
Then B5 =G has Hasse diagram

12345

1234

123 124

12 13

One simple property of a quotient poset Bn =G is the following.

5.5 Proposition. The quotient poset Bn =G defined above is graded of rank n and
rank-symmetric.
Proof. We leave as an exercise the easy proof that Bn =G is graded of rank n and
that the rank of an element o of Bn =G is just the rank in Bn of any of the elements
46 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

x 2 o. Thus the number of elements pi .Bn =G/ of rank i is equal to the number of
orbits o 2 .Bn /i =G. If x 2 Bn , then let xN denote the set-theoretic complement of x,
i.e.,
xN D f1; : : : ; ng  x D f1  i  nW i 62 xg:
Then fx1 ; : : : ; xj g is an orbit of i -element subsets of f1; : : : ; ng if and only if
fxN 1 ; : : : ; xN j g is an orbit of .n  i /-element subsets [why?]. Hence j.Bn /i =Gj D
j.Bn /ni =Gj, so Bn =G is rank-symmetric. t
u

Let 2 Sn . We associate with a linear transformation (still denoted )

W R.Bn /i ! R.Bn /i by the rule
0 1
X X
@ cx x A D cx .x/;
x2.Bn /i x2.Bn /i

where each cx is a real number. This defines an action of Sn , or of any subgroup G

of Sn , on the vector space R.Bn /i . The matrix of with respect to the basis .Bn /i
is just a permutation matrix, i.e., a matrix with one 1 in every row and column and
0’s elsewhere. We will be interested in elements of R.Bn /i which are fixed by every
element of a subgroup G of Sn . The set of all such elements is denoted R.Bn /G i , so

i D fv 2 R.Bn /i W .v/ D v for all 2 Gg:

R.Bn /G

5.6 Lemma. A basis for R.Bn /G

i consists of the elements

X
vo WD x;
x2o

where o 2 .Bn /i =G, the set of G-orbits for the action of G on .Bn /i .
Proof. First note that if o is an orbit and x 2 o, then by definition of orbit we have
.x/ 2 o for all 2 G (or all 2 Sn ). Since permutes the elements of .Bn /i ,
it follows that permutes the elements of o. Thus .vo / D vo , so vo 2 R.Bn /G i .
It is clear that the vo ’s are linearly independent since any x 2 .Bn /i appears with
nonzero coefficient in exactly one vo . P
It remains to show that the vo ’s span R.Bn /G i , i.e., any v D x2.Bn /i cx x 2
R.Bn /i can be written as a linear combination of vo ’s. Given x 2 .Bn /i , let Gx D
G

f 2 GW .x/ D xg, the stabilizer of x. We leave as an easy exercise the standard

fact that .x/ D .x/ (where ;  2 G) if and only if and  belong to the same
left coset of Gx , i.e., Gx D Gx . It follows that in the multiset of elements .x/,
where ranges over all elements of G and x is fixed, every element y in the orbit
Gx appears #Gx times, and no other elements appear. In other words,
X
.x/ D jGx j  vGx :
2G
5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras 47

(Do not confuse the orbit Gx with the subgroup Gx !) Now apply to v and sum on
all 2 G. Since .v/ D v (because v 2 R.Bn /Gi ), we get

X
jGj  v D .v/
2G
0 1
X X
D @ cx .x/A
2G x2.Bn /i
!
X X
D cx .x/
x2.Bn /i 2G
X
D cx  .#Gx /  vGx :
x2.Bn /i

Dividing by jGj expresses v as a linear combination of the elements vGx (or vo ), as

desired. t
u

Now let us consider the effect of applying the order-raising operator Ui to an

element v of R.Bn /G
i .

i , then Ui .v/ 2 R.Bn /i C1 .

5.7 Lemma. If v 2 R.Bn /G G

Proof. Note that since 2 G is an automorphism of Bn , we have x < y in Bn if

and only if .x/ < .y/ in Bn . It follows [why?] that if x 2 .Bn /i then

Ui . .x// D .Ui .x//:

Since Ui and are linear transformations, it follows by linearity that Ui .u/ D

Ui .u/ for all u 2 R.Bn /i . In other words, Ui D Ui . Then

.Ui .v// D Ui . .v//

D Ui .v/;

so Ui .v/ 2 R.Bn /G
i C1 , as desired. t
u

We come to the main result of this chapter and indeed our main result on the
Sperner property.
5.8 Theorem. Let G be a subgroup of Sn . Then the quotient poset Bn =G is graded
of rank n, rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal, and Sperner.

Proof. Let P D Bn =G. We have already seen in Proposition 5.5 that P is graded of
rank n and rank-symmetric. We want to define order-raising operators UO i W RPi !
RPi C1 and order-lowering operators DO i W RPi ! RPi 1 . Let us first consider just
48 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

UO i . The idea is to identify the basis element vo of RBnG with the basis element o
of RP and to let UO i W RPi ! RPi C1 correspond to the usual order-raising operator
Ui W R.Bn /i ! R.Bn /i C1 . More precisely, suppose that the order-raising operator
Ui for Bn given by (4.2) satisfies
X
Ui .vo / D co;o0 vo0 ; (5.2)
o0 2.Bn /i C1 =G

where o 2 .Bn /i =G. (Note that by Lemma 5.7, Ui .vo / does indeed have the form
given by (5.2).) Then define the linear operator UO i W R..Bn /i =G/ ! R..Bn /i =G/ by
X
UO i .o/ D co;o0 o0 :
o0 2.Bn /i C1 =G

NOTE. We can depict the “transport of Ui to UOi ” by a commutative diagram:

Ui
.RBn /G
i ! .RBn /G
i C1
? ?
? ?
Šy yŠ
UOi
R.Bn =G/i ! R.Bn =G/i C1

The arrows pointing down are the linear transformations induced by vo 7! o. The
map obtained by applying the top arrow followed by the rightmost down arrow is
the same as applying the leftmost down arrow followed by the bottom arrow.
We claim that UO i is P
order-raising. We need to show that if co;o0 ¤ 0, then o0 > o
in Bn =G. Since vo0 D x 0 2o0 x 0 , the only way co;o0 ¤ 0 in (5.2) is for some x 0 2 o0
to satisfy x 0 > x for some x 2 o. But this is just what it means for o0 > o, so UO i is
order-raising.
Now comes the heart of the argument. We want to show that UO i is one-to-one for
i < n=2. Now by Theorem 4.7, Ui is one-to-one for i < n=2. Thus the restriction of
Ui to the subspace R.Bn /G i is one-to-one. (The restriction of a one-to-one function
is always one-to-one.) But Ui and UO i are exactly the same transformation, except
for the names of the basis elements on which they act. Thus UO i is also one-to-one
for i < n=2.
An exactly analogous argument can be applied to Di instead of Ui . We obtain
one-to-one order-lowering operators DO i W R.Bn /G i ! R.Bn /i 1 for i > n=2. It
G

follows from Proposition 4.4, Lemma 4.5, and (4.4) that Bn =G is rank-unimodal
and Sperner, completing the proof. t
u

We will consider two

 interesting applications of Theorem 5.8. For our first
 appli-

cation, we let n D m2 for some m  1 and let M D f1; : : : ; mg. Set X D M2 , the
set of all two-element subsets of M . Think of the elements of X as (possible) edges
of a simple graph with vertex set M . If BX is the boolean algebra of all subsets of
5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras 49

Fig. 5.1 The poset BX =G of

nonisomorphic graphs with
four vertices

X (so BX and Bn are isomorphic), then an element x of BX is a collection of edges

on the vertex set M , in other words, just a simple graph on M . Define a subgroup
  G
of SX as follows. Informally, G consists of all permutations of the edges M2 that
are induced from permutations of the vertices M . More precisely, if 2 Sm , then
define O 2 SX by O  fi; j g D f  i;  j g. Thus G is isomorphic to Sm .
When are two graphs x; y 2 BX in the same orbit of the action of G on BX ?
Since the elements of G just permute vertices, we see that x and y are in the same
orbit if we can obtain x from y by permuting vertices. This is just what it means for
two simple graphs x and y to be isomorphic—they are the same graph except for the
names of the vertices (thinking of edges as pairs of vertices). Thus the elements of
BX =G are isomorphism classes of simple graphs on the vertex set M . In particular,
#.BX =G/ is the number of nonisomorphic m-vertex simple graphs, and #.BX =G/i
is the number of nonisomorphic such graphs with i edges. We have x  y in BX =G
if there is some way of labelling the vertices of x and y so that every edge of x
is an edge of y. Equivalently, some spanning subgraph of y (i.e., a subgraph of y
with all the vertices of y) is isomorphic to x, as illustrated in Fig. 5.1 for the case
m D 4. Hence by Theorem 5.8 there follows the following result, which is by no
means obvious and has no known non-algebraic proof.
5.9 Theorem. (a) Fix m  1. Let pi be the number of nonisomorphic simple
graphs with m vertices and i edges. Then the sequence p0 ; p1 ; : : : ; p.m/ is
2
symmetric and unimodal.
(b) Let T be a collection of simple graphs with m vertices such that no element
of T is isomorphic to a spanning subgraph of another element of T . Then #T
is maximized
  by taking T to consist of all nonisomorphic simple graphs with
b 12 m2 c edges.
Our second example of the use of Theorem 5.8 is more subtle and will be the
topic of the next chapter.
50 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

Digression. Edge reconstruction. Much work has been done on “reconstruction

problems,” that is, trying to reconstruct a mathematical structure such as a graph
from some of its substructures. The most famous of such problems is vertex
reconstruction: given a simple graph G on p vertices v1 ; : : : ; vp , let Gi be the
subgraph obtained by deleting vertex vi (and all incident edges). Given the multiset
fG1 ; : : : ; Gp g of vertex-deleted subgraphs graphs, can G be uniquely reconstructed?
It is important to realize that the vertices are unlabelled, so given Gi we don’t know
for any j which vertex is vj . The famous vertex-reconstruction conjecture (still
open) states that for p  3 any graph G can be reconstructed from the multiset
fG1 ; : : : ; Gp g.
Here we will be concerned with edge reconstruction, another famous open
problem. Given a simple graph G with edges e1 ; : : : ; eq , let Hi D G  ei , the
graph obtained from G by removing the edge ei .

Edge-Reconstruction Conjecture. A simple graph G can be uniquely recon-

structed from its number of vertices and the multiset fH1 ; : : : ; Hq g of edge-deleted
subgraphs.
NOTE. As in the case of vertex reconstruction, the subgraphs Hi are unlabelled. The
reason for including the number of vertices is that for any graph with no edges, we
have fH1 ; : : : ; Hq g D ;, so we need to specify the number of vertices to obtain G.
NOTE. It can be shown that if G can be vertex-reconstructed, then G can be
edge reconstructed. Hence the vertex-reconstruction conjecture implies the edge-
reconstruction conjecture.
The techniques developed above to analyze group actions on boolean algebra
can be used to prove a special case of the edge-reconstruction
  conjecture. Note that
a simple graph with p vertices has at most p2 edges.
 
5.10 Theorem. Let G be a simple graph with p vertices and q > 12 p2 edges. Then
G is edge-reconstructible.
Proof. Let Pq be the set of all simple graphs with q edges on the vertex set Œp D
p
f1; 2; : : : ; pg, so #P D . 2 / . Let RP denote the real vector space with basis P .
q q q q
Define a linear transformation q W RPq ! RPq1 by

q ./ D 1 C    C q ;

where 1 ; : : : ; q are the (labelled) graphs obtained

  from  by deleting a single
edge. By Theorem 4.7, q is injective for q > 12 p2 . (Think of q as adding edges
 
to the complement of , i.e., the graph with vertex set Œp and edge set Œp
2 E./.)
The symmetric group Sp acts on Pq by permuting the vertices and hence acts
on RPq , the real vector space with basis Pq . A basis for the fixed space .RPq /Sp
P
consists of the distinct sums Q D 2Sp ./, where  2 Pq . We may identify Q
with the unlabelled graph isomorphic to , since Q D Q 0 if and only if  and  0 are
isomorphic. Just as in the proof of Theorem 5.8, when we restrict q to .RPq /Sp
5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras 51

 
for q > 12 p2 we obtain an injection q W .RPq /Sp ! .RPq1 /Sp . In particular, for
nonisomorphic unlabelled graphs ; Q Q 0 with p vertices, we have

Q 1 C    C Q q D Q ¤
q ./
Q 0 / D Q 10 C    C Q q0 :
q .

Hence the unlabelled graphs Q 1 ; : : : ; Q q determine ,

Q as desired. t
u

Polynomials with Real Zeros. There are many techniques other than the linear
algebra used to prove Theorem 5.8 for showing that sequences are unimodal. Here
we will discuss a technique based on simple analysis (calculus) for showing that
sequences are unimodal. In fact, we will consider some stronger properties than
unimodality.
A sequence a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an of real numbers is called logarithmically concave, or
log-concave for short, if ai2  ai 1 ai C1 for 1  i  n1. We say that a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an
is strongly log-concave if bi2  bi 1 bi C1 for 1  i  n  1, where bi D ai = ni .
Strong log-concavity is equivalent to [why?]
  
1 1
ai2  1C 1C ai 1 ai C1 ; 1  i  n  1;
i ni

from which it follows that strong log-concavity implies log-concavity.

Assume now that each ai  0. Does log-concavity then imply unimodality?
The answer is no, a counterexample being 1; 0; 0; 1. However, only this type
of counterexample can occur, as we now explain. We say that the sequence
a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an has no internal zeros if whenever we have i < j < k, ai ¤ 0,
and ak ¤ 0, then aj ¤ 0.
5.11 Proposition. Let ˛ D .a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an / be a sequence of nonnegative real
numbers with no internal zeros. If ˛ is log-concave, then ˛ is unimodal.

Proof. If there are only two values of j for which aj ¤ 0 then we always have
ai 1 ai C1 D 0 so the conclusion is clear. Now assume that there are at least three
values of j for which aj ¤ 0 and assume that the proposition is false. Then there
exists 1  i  n  1 for which ai 1 > ai  ai C1 and ai C1 > 0, so ai2 < ai 1 ai C1 ,
a contradiction. t
u

Now we come to a fundamental method for proving log-concavity.

5.12 Theorem (I. Newton). Let
!
X
n X n
n
P .x/ D bi x D i
ai x i
i D0 i D0
i

be a real polynomial all of whose zeros are real numbers. Then the sequence
b0 ; b1 ; : : : ; bn is strongly log-concave, or equivalently, the sequence a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an is
52 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

log-concave. Moreover, if each bi  0 (so the zeros of P .x/ are nonpositive [why?])
then the sequence b0 ; b1 ; : : : ; bn has no internal zeros.

Proof. Let deg P .x/ D m  n. By the fundamental theorem of algebra, P .x/ has
exactly m real zeros, counting multiplicities. Suppose that ˛ is a zero of multiplicity
r > 1, so P .x/ D .x  ˛/r L.x/ for some polynomial L.x/ satisfying L.˛/ ¤ 0.
A simple computation shows that ˛ is a zero of P 0 .x/ (the derivative of P .x/) of
multiplicity r  1. Moreover, if ˛ < ˇ are both zeros of P .x/, then Rolle’s theorem
shows that P 0 .x/ has a zero  satisfying ˛ <  < ˇ. It follows [why?] that P 0 .x/
has at least m  1 real zeros. Since deg P 0 .x/ D m  1 we see that P 0 .x/ has exactly
m  1 real zeros and no other zeros.
d i 1
Let Q.x/ D dx i 1 P .x/. Thus Q.x/ is a polynomial of degree at most m  i C 1

with only real zeros. Let R.x/ D x mi C1 Q.1=x/, a polynomial of degree at most
m  i C 1. The zeros of R.x/ are just reciprocals of those zeros of Q.x/ not equal
to 0, with possible new zeros at 0. At any rate, all zeros of R.x/ are real. Now
d mi 1
let S.x/ D dx mi 1 R.x/, a polynomial of degree at most two. By Rolle’s theorem
(with a suitable handling of multiple zeros as above), every zero of S.x/ is real. An
explicit computation yields

mŠ
S.x/ D .ai 1 x 2 C 2ai x C ai C1 /:
2

If ai 1 D 0 then trivially ai2  ai 1 ai C1 . Otherwise S.x/ is a quadratic polynomial.

Since it has real zeros, its discriminant
is nonnegative. But

D .2ai /2  4ai 1 ai C1 D 4.ai2  ai 1 ai C1 /  0;

so the sequence a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an is log-concave as claimed.

It remains to show that if each ai  0 then the sequence a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an has
no internal zeros. Suppose to the contrary that for some i < j < k we have
ai > 0; aj D 0; ak > 0. By arguing as in the previous paragraph we will obtain
a polynomial of the form c C dx ki with only real zeros, where c; d > 0. But
since k  i  2 we have that every such polynomial has a nonreal zero [why?], a
contradiction which completes the proof. t
u

In order to give combinatorial applications of Theorem 5.12 we need to find

polynomials with real zeros whose coefficients are of combinatorial interest.
One such example appears in Exercise 9 in Chap. 9, based on the fact that the
characteristic polynomial of a symmetric matrix has only real zeros.
Exercises for Chap. 5 53

Notes for Chap. 5

The techniques developed in this chapter had their origins in papers of L.H. Harper
[53] and M. Pouzet and I.G. Rosenberg [87]. The closest treatment to ours appears in
a paper of R. Stanley [103]. This latter paper also contains the proof of Theorem 5.10
(edge reconstruction) given here. This result was first proved  by L. Lovász [70]
by an inclusion–exclusion argument. The condition q > 12 p2 in Theorem 5.10 was
improved to q > p.log2 p  1/ by V. Müller [78] (generalizing the argument
of Lovász) and by I. Krasikov and Y. Roditty [66] (generalizing the argument of
Stanley).
For further information on Newton’s Theorem 5.12, see, e.g., G.H. Hardy et al.
[52, p. 52]. For a general survey on unimodality, log-concavity, etc., see Stanley
[105], with a sequel by F. Brenti [12].

Exercises for Chap. 5

1. (a) Let G D f; g be a group of order two (with identity element ). Let G act
on f1; 2; 3; 4g by  1 D 2,  2 D 1,  3 D 3, and  4 D 4. Draw the
Hasse diagram of the quotient poset B4 =G.
(b) Do the same for the action  1 D 2,  2 D 1,  3 D 4, and  4 D 3.
2. Draw the Hasse diagram of the poset of nonisomorphic simple graphs with five
vertices (with the subgraph ordering). What is the size of the largest antichain?
How many antichains have this size?
3. Give an example of a finite graded poset P with the Sperner property, together
with a group G acting on P , such that the quotient poset P =G is not Sperner.
(By Theorem 5.8, P cannot be a boolean algebra.)
4. Consider the poset P whose Hasse diagram is given by
54 5 Group Actions on Boolean Algebras

Find a subgroup G of the symmetric group S7 for which P Š B7 =G or else

prove that such a group does not exist.
5. A .0; 1/-necklace of length n and weight i is a circular arrangement of i 1’s and
ni 0’s. For instance, the .0; 1/-necklaces of length 6 and weight 3 are (writing
a circular arrangement linearly) 000111, 001011, 010011, and 010101. (Cyclic
shifts of a linear word represent the same necklace, e.g., 000111 is the same
as 110001.) Let Nn denote the set of all .0; 1/-necklaces of length n. Define a
partial order on Nn by letting u  v if we can obtain v from u by changing some
0’s to 1’s. It’s easy to see (you may assume it) that Nn is graded of rank n, with
the rank of a necklace being its weight.
(a) (*) Show that Nn is rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal, and Sperner.
(b) (Difficult) show that Nn has a symmetric chain decomposition, as defined
on page 40.
6. (unsolved) Show that every quotient poset Bn =G has a symmetric chain
decomposition.
7. Let M be a finite multiset, say with ai i ’s for 1  i  k. Let BM denote the
poset of all submultisets of M , ordered by multiset inclusion. For instance, the
figure below illustrates the case a1 D 2, a2 D 3.

11222

1222 1122

222 122 112

22 12 11

2 1

Use Theorem 5.8 to show that BM is rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal, and

Sperner. (There are other ways to do this problem, but you are asked to use
Theorem 5.8. Thus you need to find a subgroup G of Sn for suitable n for
which BM Š Bn =G.)
8. (unsolved) Let G be the group related to Theorem 5.9, so G acts on BX where X
 m-set.
consists of all two-element subsets of an  Find an explicit order-matching
W .BX =G/i ! .BX =G/i C1 for i < 12 m2 . Even the weaker problem of finding
an explicit injection .BX =G/i ! .BX =G/i C1 is open.
9. (a) (*) Let Gp be the set of all simple graphs on the vertex set Œp, so #Gp D
p
2. 2 / . Given a graph G 2 Gp , let Gi be the graph obtained by switching at
vertex i , i.e., deleting every edge incident to vertex i and adding every edge
from vertex i that isn’t an edge of G. Define a linear transformation
Exercises for Chap. 5 55

W RGp ! RGp

by .G/ D G1 C    C Gp . Show that  is invertible if and only if p 6

0 .mod 4/.
(b) The graph G is switching-reconstructible if it can be uniquely recon-
structed from the multiset of unlabelled vertex switches Gi . That is, we
are given each Gi as an unlabelled graph. Show that G is switching-
reconstructible if p 6 0 .mod 4/.
(c) (unsolved) Show that G is switching-reconstructible if p ¤ 4.
(d) Show that the number of edges of G can be determined from the multiset
of unlabelled Gi ’s if p ¤ 4. Find two graphs with four vertices and a
different number of edges, but with the same unlabelled Gi ’s.
(e) Define G to be weakly switching-reconstructible if it can be uniquely
reconstructed from the multiset of labelled vertex switches Gi . That is,
we are given each Gi as a labelled graph, but we aren’t told the vertex
i that was switched. Show that G is weakly switching-reconstructible if
p ¤ 4, but that G need not be weakly switching-reconstructible if p D 4.
10. Suppose X is a finite n-element set and G a group of permutations of X . Thus
G acts on the subsets of X . We say that G acts transitively on the j -element
subsets if for every two j -element subsets S and T , there is a 2 G for which
 S D T . Show that if G acts transitively on j -element subsets for some
j  n=2, then G acts transitively on i -element subsets for all 0  i  j .
(Although this can be done directly, there is a very easy proof using results
proven in the text.)
11. In Example 5.4(b) is drawn the Hasse diagram of B5 =G, where G is generated
by the cycle .1; 2; 3; 4; 5/. Using the vertex labels shown in this figure,
compute explicitly U b 2 .12/ and U
b 2 .13/ as linear combinations of 123 and 124,
where U b 2 is defined as in the proof of Theorem 5.8. What is the matrix of U b2
with respect to the bases .B5 =G/ P 2 and .B 5 =G/ 3 ?
12. A real polynomial F .x/ D niD0 ai x i is called log-concave if the sequence
a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an of coefficients is log-concave. Let F .x/ and G.x/ be log-
concave polynomials whose coefficients are positive. Show that the same is
true for F .x/G.x/.
13. (*) Let F .x/ be a real polynomial with positive leading coefficient whose zeros
all have the polar form rei , where 2 3
   4 3
. Show that F .x/ has positive,
log-concave coefficients.
Chapter 6
Young Diagrams and q-Binomial Coefficients

A partition  of an integer n P0 is a sequence  D .1 ; 2 ; : : : / of integers i  0

satisfying 1  2     and i 1 i D n. Thus all but finitely many i are equal
to 0. Each i > 0 is called a part of . We sometimes suppress 0’s from the notation
for , e.g., .5; 2; 2; 1/, .5; 2; 2; 1; 0; 0; 0/, and .5; 2; 2; 1; 0; 0; : : : / all represent the
same partition  (of 10, with four parts). If  is a partition of n, then we denote this
by  ` n or jj D n.
6.1 Example. There are seven partitions of 5, namely (writing, e.g., 221 as short
for .2; 2; 1/): 5, 41, 32, 311, 221, 2111, and 11111.
The subject of partitions of integers has been extensively developed, but we
will only be concerned here with a small part related to our previous discussion.
Given positive integers m and n, let L.m; n/ denote the set of all partitions
with at most m parts and with largest part at most n. For instance, L.2; 3/ D
f;; 1; 2; 3; 11; 21; 31; 22; 32; 33g. (Note that we are denoting by ; the unique
partition .0; 0; : : : / with no parts.) If  D .1 ; 2 ; : : : / and  D .1 ; 2 ; : : : /
are partitions, then define    if i  i for all i . This makes the set of all
partitions into a very interesting poset, denoted Y and called Young’s lattice (named
after the British mathematician Alfred Young, 1873–1940). (It is called “Young’s
lattice” rather than “Young’s poset” because it turns out to have certain properties
which define a lattice. However, these properties are irrelevant to us here, so we will
not bother to define the notion of a lattice.) We will be looking at some properties of
Y in Chap. 8. The partial ordering on Y , when restricted to L.m; n/, makes L.m; n/
into a poset which also has some fascinating properties. Figure 6.1 shows L.1; 4/,
L.2; 2/, and L.2; 3/, while Fig. 6.2 shows L.3; 3/.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 57

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 6,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
58 6 Young Diagrams

Fig. 6.1 The posets L.1; 4/, 33

L.2; 2/, and L.2; 3/
4 22 32

3 21 22 31

2 11 2 21 3

1 1 11 2

φ φ 1

There is a nice geometric way of viewing partitions and the poset L.m; n/.
The Young diagram (sometimes just called the diagram) of a partition  is a left-
justified array of squares, with i squares in the i th row. For instance, the Young
diagram of .4; 3; 1; 1/ looks like:

If dots are used instead of boxes, then the resulting diagram is called a Ferrers
diagram. Thus the Ferrers diagram of .4; 3; 1; 1/ looks like

The advantage of Young diagrams over Ferrers diagrams is that we can put
numbers in the boxes of a Young diagram, which we will do in Chap. 8. Observe
that L.m; n/ is simply the set of Young diagrams D fitting in an m  n rectangle
(where the upper-left (northwest) corner of D is the same as the northwest corner
of the rectangle), ordered by inclusion. We will always assume that when a Young
diagram D is contained in a rectangle R, the northwest corners agree. It is also clear
from the Young diagram point of view that L.m; n/ and L.n; m/ are isomorphic
6 Young Diagrams 59

Fig. 6.2 The poset L.3; 3/ 333

332

322 331

222 321 33

221 311 32

211 22 31

111 21 3

11 2

partially ordered sets, the isomorphism being given by transposing the diagram (i.e.,
interchanging rows and columns). If  has Young diagram D, then the partition
whose diagram is D t (the transpose of D) is called the conjugate of  and is
denoted 0 . For instance, .4; 3; 1; 1/0 D .4; 2; 2; 1/, with diagram

6.2 Proposition. The poset L.m; n/ is graded of rank mn and rank-symmetric.

The rank of a partition  is just jj (the sum of the parts of  or the number of
squares in its Young diagram).
Proof. As in the proof of Proposition 5.5, we leave to the reader everything except
rank-symmetry. To show rank-symmetry, consider the complement N of  in an
m  n rectangle R, i.e., all the squares of R except for . (Note that N depends
on m and n and not just .) For instance, in L.4; 5/, the complement of .4; 3; 1; 1/
looks like
60 6 Young Diagrams

If we rotate the diagram of N by 180ı then we obtain the diagram of a partition

Q 2 L.m; n/ satisfying jj C jj
Q D mn. This correspondence between  and Q
shows that L.m; n/ is rank-symmetric. t
u

Our main goal in this chapter is to show that L.m; n/ is rank-unimodal and
Sperner. Let us write pi .m; n/ as short for pi .L.m; n//, the number of elements
of L.m; n/ of rank i . Equivalently, pi .m; n/ is the number of partitions of i with
largest part at most n and with at most m parts, or, in other words, the number of
distinct Young diagrams with i squares which fit inside an m  n rectangle (with the
same northwest corner, as explained previously). Though not really necessary for
our goal, it is nonetheless interesting to obtain some information on these numbers
pi .m; n/. First let us consider the total number #L.m; n/ of elements in L.m; n/.
 
6.3 Proposition. We have #L.m; n/ D mCn m .
 
Proof. We will give an elegant combinatorial proof, based on the fact that mCn m
is
equal to the number of sequences a1 ; a2 ; : : : ; amCn , where each aj is either N or E,
and there are m N ’s (and hence n E’s) in all. We will associate a Young diagram
D contained in an m  n rectangle R with such a sequence as follows. Begin at the
lower left-hand corner of R and trace out the southeast boundary of D, ending at
the upper right-hand corner of R. This is done by taking a sequence of unit steps
(where each square of R is one unit in length), each step either north or east. Record
the sequence of steps, using N for a step to the north and E for a step to the east.
Example. Let m D 5, n D 6, and  D .4; 3; 1; 1/. Then R and D are given by:

The corresponding sequence of N ’s and E’s is NEN NEENENEE.

6 Young Diagrams 61

It is easy to see (left to the reader) that the above correspondence gives a bijection
between Young diagrams D fitting in an m  n rectangle R and sequences of m
N ’s and n E’s. Hence the number of diagrams is equal to mCn m , the number of
sequences. t
u
We now consider how many elements of L.m; n/ have rank i . To this end, let q
be an indeterminate; and given j  1 define .j / D 1 C q C q 2 C    C q j 1 . Thus
.1/ D 1, .2/ D 1Cq, .3/ D 1CqCq 2 , etc. Note that .j / is a polynomial in q whose
value at q D 1 is just j (denoted .j /qD1 D j ). Next define .j /Š D .1/.2/    .j / for
j  1 and set .0/Š D 1. Thus .1/Š D 1, .2/Š D 1 C q, .3/Š D .1 C q/.1 C q C q 2 / D
1 C 2q C 2q 2 C q 3 , etc., and .j /ŠqD1 D j Š. Finally define for k  j  0
 
k .k/Š
D :
j .j /Š.k  j /Š
 
The expression jk is called a q-binomial coefficient (or Gaussian coefficient).
When q is regarded as a prime power  rather than as an indeterminate, then
Exercise 4 in Chap. 4 gives a definition of kn in terms  of the field Fq . In this chapter
we have no need of this algebraic interpretation of kn .
Since .r/ŠqD1 D rŠ, it is clear that
  !
k k
D :
j qD1 j
   
One sometimes says that jk is a “q-analogue” of the binomial coefficient jk . There
is no precise definition of a q-analogue P .q/ of some mathematical object P (such
as a formula or definition). It should have the property that there is a reasonable
way to interpret P .1/ as being P . Ideally P .q/ should have some interpretation
involving Fq when q is regarded as a prime power. The q-analogue of the set f1g
is the finite field Fq , and the q-analogue of the set Œn D f1; 2; : : : ; ng is the vector
space Fnq .
   k 
6.4 Example. We have jk D kj [why?]. Moreover,
   
k k
D D 1;
0 k
   
k k
D D .k/ D 1 C q C q 2 C    C q k1 ;
1 k1
 
4 .4/.3/.2/.1/
D D 1 C q C 2q 2 C q 3 C q 4 ;
2 .2/.1/.2/.1/
   
5 5
D D 1 C q C 2q 2 C 2q 3 C 2q 4 C q 5 C q 6 :
2 3
62 6 Young Diagrams

 
In the above example, jk was always a polynomial in q (and with nonnegative
integer coefficients). It is not obvious that this is always the case, but it will follow
easily from the following lemma.
6.5 Lemma. We have
     
k k1 k1
D C q kj ; (6.1)
j j j 1
0  k
whenever k  1, with the initial conditions 0
D 1, j
D 0 if j < 0 or j > k
 
(the same initial conditions satisfied by the binomial coefficients jk ).
Proof. This is a straightforward computation. Specifically, we have
   
k1 k1 .k  1/Š .k  1/Š
C q kj D C q kj
j j 1 .j /Š.k  1  j /Š .j  1/Š.k  j /Š
 
.k  1/Š 1 q kj
D C
.j  1/Š.k  1  j /Š .j / .k  j /
.k  1/Š .k  j / C q kj .j /
D
.j  1/Š.k  1  j /Š .j /.k  j /
.k  1/Š .k/
D
.j  1/Š.k  1  j /Š .j /.k  j /
 
k
D :
j
t
u
Note that if we put q D 1 in (6.1) we obtain the well-known formula
! ! !
k k1 k1
D C ;
j j j 1

which is just the recurrence defining Pascal’s triangle. Thus (6.1) may be regarded
as a q-analogue of the Pascal triangle recurrence.
We can regard equation (6.1) as a recurrence relation for the q-binomial
coefficients. Given
 the initial conditions of Lemma 6.5, we can use (6.1) inductively
to compute jk for any k and j . From this it is obvious by induction that the
 
q-binomial coefficient jk is a polynomial in q with nonnegative integer coeffi-
cients. The following theorem gives an even stronger result, namely, an explicit
combinatorial interpretation of the coefficients.
6.6 Theorem. Let pi .m; n/ denote the number of elements of L.m; n/ of rank i .
Then
X  
mCn
pi .m; n/q D
i
: (6.2)
i 0
m
6 Young Diagrams 63

NOTE. The sum on the left-hand side is really a finite sum, since pi .m; n/ D 0 if
i > mn.

Proof. Let P .m; n/ denote the left-hand side of (6.2). We will show that

P .0; 0/ D 1; and P .m; n/ D 0 if m < 0 or n < 0; (6.3)

P .m; n/ D P .m; n  1/ C q n P .m  1; n/: (6.4)

Note that (6.3) and (6.4) completely determine P .m;n/. On  the other hand,
substituting k D m C n and j D m in (6.1) shows that mCn also satisfies (6.4).
 m 
Moreover, the initial conditions of Lemma 6.5 show that mCn also satisfies (6.3).
mCn m
Hence (6.3) and (6.4) imply that P .m; n/ D m , so to complete the proof we
need only establish (6.3) and (6.4).
Equation (6.3) Pis clear, since L.0; n/ consists of a single point (the empty
partition ;), so i 0 pi .0; n/q i D 1; while L.m; n/ is empty (or undefined, if
you prefer) if m < 0 or n < 0.
The crux of the proof is to show (6.4). Taking the coefficient of q i of both sides
of (6.4), we see [why?] that (6.4) is equivalent to

pi .m; n/ D pi .m; n  1/ C pi n .m  1; n/: (6.5)

Consider a partition  ` i whose Young diagram D fits in an m  n rectangle R. If

D does not contain the upper right-hand corner of R, then D fits in an m  .n  1/
rectangle, so there are pi .m; n  1/ such partitions . If on the other hand D does
contain the upper right-hand corner of R, then D contains the whole first row of R.
When we remove the first row of R, we have left a Young diagram of size i  n
which fits in an .m  1/  n rectangle. Hence there are pi n .m  1; n/ such , and
the proof follows [why?]. t
u

 qD
Note that if we set  1 in (6.2), then the left-hand side becomes #L.m; n/ and
the right-hand side mCn m
, agreeing with Proposition 6.3.
As the reader may have guessed by now, the poset L.m; n/ is isomorphic to a
quotient poset Bs =G for a suitable integer s > 0 and finite group G acting on Bs .
Actually, it is clear that we must have s D mn since L.m; n/ has rank mn and in
general Bs =G has rank s. What is not so clear is the right choice of G. To this end,
let R D Rmn denote an m  n rectangle of squares. For instance, R35 is given by the
15 squares of the diagram
64 6 Young Diagrams

We now define the group G D Gmn as follows. It is a subgroup of the group SR of

all permutations of the squares of R. A permutation in G is allowed to permute
the elements in each row of R in any way and then to permute the rows among
themselves in any way. The elements of each row can be permuted in nŠ ways, so
since there are m rows there are a total of nŠm permutations preserving the rows.
Then the m rows can be permuted in mŠ ways, so it follows that the order of Gmn is
given by mŠnŠm . The group Gmn is called the wreath product of Sn and Sm , denoted
Sn o Sm or Sn wr Sm . However, we will not discuss the general theory of wreath
products here.
6.7 Example. Suppose m D 4 and n D 5, with the boxes of R labelled as follows:

1 2 3 4 5
6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20

Then a typical permutation in G.4; 5/ looks like

16 20 17 19 18
4 1 5 2 3
12 13 15 14 11
7 9 6 10 8

i.e., .16/ D 1, .20/ D 2, etc.

We have just defined a group Gmn of permutations of the set R D Rmn of squares
of an m  n rectangle. Hence Gmn acts on the boolean algebra BR of all subsets of
the set R. The next lemma describes the orbits of this action.
6.8 Lemma. Every orbit o of the action of Gmn on BR contains exactly one Young
diagram D, i.e., exactly one subset D  R such that D is left-justified, and if i is
the number of elements of D in row i of R, then 1  2      m .
Proof. Let S be a subset of R and suppose that S has ˛i elements in row i . If 2
Gmn and  S has ˇi elements in row i , then ˇ1 ; : : : ; ˇm is just some permutation of
˛1 ; : : : ; ˛m [why?]. There is a unique ordering 1 ; : : : ; m of ˛1 ; : : : ; ˛m satisfying
1      m , so the only possible Young diagram D in the orbit  S is the one
of shape  D .1 ; : : : ; m /. It’s easy to see that the Young diagram D of shape 
is indeed in the orbit  S . Namely, by permuting the elements in the rows of R we
can left-justify the rows of S , and then by permuting the rows of R themselves we
can arrange the row sizes of S to be in weakly decreasing order. Thus we obtain the
Young diagram D as claimed. t
u
We are now ready for the main result of this chapter.
6.9 Theorem. Set R D Rmn . Then the quotient poset BR =Gmn is isomorphic to
L.m; n/.
6 Young Diagrams 65

Proof. Each element of BR =Gmn contains a unique Young diagram D by Lemma

6.8. Moreover, two different orbits cannot contain the same Young diagram D since
orbits are disjoint. Thus the map 'W BR =Gmn ! L.m; n/ defined by '.D / D 
is a bijection (one-to-one and onto). We claim that in fact ' is an isomorphism of
partially ordered sets. We need to show the following: let o and o be orbits of Gmn
(i.e., elements of BR =Gmn ). Let D and D be the unique Young diagrams in o
and o , respectively. Then there exist D 2 o and D  2 o satisfying D  D  if
and only if    in L.m; n/.
The “if” part of the previous sentence is clear, for if    then D  D .
So assume there exist D 2 o and D  2 o satisfying D  D  . The lengths of the
rows of D, written in decreasing order, are 1 ; : : : ; m , and similarly for D  . Since
each row of D is contained in a row of D  , it follows that for each 1  j  m, D 
has at least j rows of size at least j . Thus the length j of the j th largest row of
D  is at least as large as j . In other words, j  j , as was to be proved. t
u

Combining the previous theorem with Theorem 5.8 yields the following result.
6.10 Corollary. The posets L.m; n/ are rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal, and
Sperner.
Note that the rank-symmetry and rank-unimodality
  of L.m; n/ can be rephrased
as follows: the q-binomial coefficient mCn m
has symmetric and unimodal coeffi-
cients. While rank-symmetry
  is easy to prove (see Proposition 6.2), the unimodality
of the coefficients of mCn m
is by no means apparent. It was first proved by J.
Sylvester in 1878 by a proof similar to the one above, though stated in the language
of the invariant theory of binary forms. For a long  time
 it was an open problem to
find a combinatorial proof that the coefficients of mCnm
are unimodal. Such a proof
would give an explicit injection (one-to-one function) W L.m; n/i ! L.m; n/i C1
for i < 12 mn. (One difficulty in finding such maps  is to make use of the hypothesis
that i < 12 mn.) Finally around 1989 such a proof was found by K.M. O’Hara.
However, O’Hara’s proof has the defect that the maps  are not order-matchings.
Thus her proof does not prove that L.m; n/ is Sperner, but only that it’s rank-
unimodal. It is an outstanding open problem in algebraic combinatorics to find an
explicit order-matching W L.m; n/i ! L.m; n/i C1 for i < 12 mn.
Note that the Sperner property of L.m; n/ (together with the fact that the largest
level is in the middle) can be stated in the following simple terms: the largest
possible collection C of Young diagrams fitting in an m  n rectangle such that
no diagram in C is contained in another diagram in C is obtained by taking all
the diagrams of size b 12 mnc. Although the statement of this fact requires almost
no mathematics to understand, there is no known proof that doesn’t use algebraic
machinery. The several known algebraic proofs are all closely related, and the one
we have given is the simplest. Corollary 6.10 is a good example of the efficacy of
algebraic combinatorics.
66 6 Young Diagrams

An Application to Number Theory. There is an interesting application of Corol-

lary 6.10 to a number-theoretic problem. Fix a positive integer k. For a finite subset
S of RC D fˇ 2 RW ˇ > 0g, and for a real number ˛ > 0, define
( ! )
S X
fk .S; ˛/ D # T 2 W t D˛ :
k t 2T

In other words, fk .S; ˛/ is the number of k-element subsets of S whose elements

sum to ˛. For instance, f3 .f1; 3; 4; 6; 7g; 11/ D 2, since 1 C3 C7 D 1 C4 C6 D 11.
Given positive integers k < n, our object is to maximize fk .S; ˛/ subject to the
condition that #S D n. We are free to choose both S and ˛, but k and n are fixed.
Call this maximum value hk .n/. Thus

hk .n/ D max fk .S; ˛/:

˛2RC
S RC
#S Dn

What sort of behavior can we expect of the maximizing set S ? If the elements of S
are “spread out,” say S D f1; 2; 4; 8; : : : ; 2n1 g, then all the subset sums of S are
distinct. Hence for any ˛ 2 RC we have fk .S; ˛/ D 0 or 1. Similarly, if the elements
of Sp arep“unrelated” (e.g., linearly independent over the rationals, such as S D
f1; 2; 3; ; 2 g), then again all subset sums are distinct and fk .S; ˛/ D 0 or 1.
These considerations make it plausible that we should take S D Œn D f1; 2; : : : ; ng
and then choose ˛ appropriately. In other words, we are led to the conjecture that
 C
for any S 2 Rn and ˛ 2 RC , we have

fk .S; ˛/  fk .Œn; ˇ/; (6.6)

for some ˇ 2 RC to be determined.

First let us evaluate fk .Œn; ˛/ for any ˛. This will enable us to determine the
value of ˇ in (6.6). Let S D fi1 ; : : : ; ik g  Œn with

1  i1 < i2 <    < ik  n; i1 C    C ik D ˛: (6.7)

kC1
Let jr D ir  r. Then (since 1 C 2 C    C k D 2
)
!
kC1
n  k  jk  jk1      j1  0; j1 C    C jk D ˛  : (6.8)
2

Conversely, given j1 ; : : : ; jk satisfying (6.8) we can recover i1 ; : : : ; ik satisfy-

ing (6.7). Hence fk .Œn; ˛/ is equal to the number of sequences j1 ; : : : ; jk satis-
fying (6.8). Now let
.S / D .jk ; jk1 ; : : : ; j1 /:
6 Young Diagrams 67

kC1
Note that .S / is a partition of the integer ˛  2
with at most k parts and with
largest part at most n  k. Thus

fk .Œn; ˛/ D p˛.kC1/ .k; n  k/; (6.9)

2

or equivalently,
X  
kC1 n
fk .Œn; ˛/q ˛. 2 /D :
k
˛.kC1
2 /

By the rank-unimodality  (and rank-symmetry) of L.n  k; k/ (Corollary 6.10), the

largest coefficient of kn is the middle one, that is, the coefficient of bk.n  k/=2c.
ItkC1
follows
 that for fixed k and n, fk .Œn; ˛/ is maximized for ˛ D bk.n  k/=2c C
2
D bk.n C 1/=2c. Hence the following result is plausible.
 C
6.11 Theorem. Let S 2 Rn , ˛ 2 RC , and k 2 P. Then

fk .S; ˛/  fk .Œn; bk.n C 1/=2c/:

Proof. Let S D fa1 ; : : : ; an g with 0 < a1 <    < an . Let T and U be distinct
k-element subsets of S with the same element sums, say T D fai1 ; : : : ; aik g and
U D faj1 ; : : : ; ajk g with i1 < i2 <    < ik and j1 < j2 <    < jk . Define T  D
 
fi1 ; : : : ; ik g and U  D fj1 ; : : : ; jk g, so T  ; U  2 Œn
k . The crucial observation is
the following:

Claim. The elements .T  / and .U  / are incomparable in L.k; nk/, i.e., neither
.T  /  .U  / nor .U  /  .T  /.

Proof of claim. Suppose not, say .T  /  .U  / to be definite. Thus by definition
of L.k; n  k/ we have ir  r  jr  r for 1  r  k. Hence ir  jr for 1  r  k,
so also air  ajr (since a1 <    < an ). But ai1 C    C aik D aj1 C    C ajk by
assumption, so air D ajr for all r. This contradicts the assumption that T and U are
distinct and proves the claim.
It is now easy to complete the proof of Theorem 6.11. Suppose that S1 ; : : : ; Sr
are distinct k-element subsets of S with the same element sums. By the claim,
f.S1 /; : : : ; .Sr /g is an antichain in L.k; n  k/. Hence r cannot exceed the size
of the largest antichain in L.k; n  k/. By Theorem 6.6 and Corollary 6.10, the size
of the largest antichain in L.k; n  k/ is given by pbk.nk/=2c .k; n  k/. By (6.9) this
number is equal to fk .Œn; bk.n C 1/=2c/. In other words,

r  fk .Œn; bk.n C 1/=2c/;

which is what we wanted to prove. t

u
Note that an equivalent statement
  of Theorem 6.11 is that hk .n/ is equal to the
coefficient of q bk.nk/=2c in kn [why?].
68 6 Young Diagrams

Variation on a theme. Suppose that in Theorem 6.11 we do not want to specify the
cardinality of the subsets of S . In other words, for any ˛ 2 R and any finite subset
S RC , define ( )
X
f .S; ˛/ D # T  S W t D˛ :
t 2T

How large can f .S; ˛/ be if we require #S D n? Call this maximum value h.n/.
Thus
h.n/ D max f .S; ˛/: (6.10)
˛2RC
S RC
#S Dn

For instance, if S D f1; 2; 3g then f .S; 3/ D 2 (coming from the subsets f1; 2g and
f3g). This is easily seen to be best possible, i.e., h.3/ D 2.
We will find h.n/ in a manner analogous to the proof of Theorem 6.11. The big
difference is that the relevant poset M.n/ is not of the form Bn =G, so we will have
to prove the injectivity of the order-raising operator Ui from scratch. Our proofs will
be somewhat sketchy; it shouldn’t be difficult for the reader who has come this far
to fill in the details.
Let M.n/ be the set of all subsets of Œn, with the ordering A  B if the elements
of A are a1 > a2 >    > aj and the elements of B are b1 > b2 >    > bk , where
j  k and ai  bi for 1  i  j . (The empty set ; is the bottom element of M.n/.)
Figure 6.3 shows M.1/, M.2/, M.3/, and M.4/. 
It is easy to see that M.n/ is graded of rank nC1 2 . The rank of the subset T D
fa1 ; : : : ; ak g is
rank.T / D a1 C    C ak : (6.11)
It follows [why?] that the rank-generating function of M.n/ is given by

nC1
.X2 /

F .M.n/; q/ D .#M.n/i /q i D .1 C q/.1 C q 2 /    .1 C q n /:

i D0

Define linear transformations

Ui W RM.n/i ! RM.n/i C1 ; Di W RM.n/i ! RM.n/i 1

by
X
Ui .x/ D y; x 2 M.n/i ;
y2M.n/i C1
x<y

X
Di .x/ D c.v; x/v; x 2 M.n/i ;
v2M.n/i 1
v<x
6 Young Diagrams 69

4321

432

321 431

32 43 421
21
31 42 321
1 2
21
3 41 32
φ 1
2 4 31
M(1)
φ
M(2) 1 3 21

φ 2
M(3)
1

φ
M(4)

Fig. 6.3 The posets M.1/, M.2/, M.3/, and M.4/

where the coefficient c.v; x/ is defined as follows. Let the elements of v be a1 >
   > aj > 0 and the elements of x be b1 >    > bk > 0. Since x covers v, there is
a unique r for which ar D br  1 (and ak D bk for all other k). In the case br D 1
we set ar D 0 (e.g., if x is given by 5 > 4 > 1 and v by 5 > 4, then r D 3 and
a3 D 0). Set
8 nC1
<
2 ; if ar D 0;
c.v; x/ D
: .n  a /.n C a C 1/; if a > 0:
r r r

It is a straightforward computation (proof omitted) to obtain the commutation

relation
! !
nC1
Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di D  2i Ii ; (6.12)
2

where Ii denotes the identity linear transformation on RM.n/i . Clearly by definition

 
Ui is order-raising. We want to show that Ui is injective (one-to-one) for i < 12 nC1
2 .
We can’t argue as in the proof of Lemma 4.6 that Ui 1 Di is semidefinite since the
matrices of Ui 1 and Di are no longer transposes of one another. Instead we use the
following result from linear algebra.
70 6 Young Diagrams

6.12 Lemma. Let V and W be finite-dimensional vector spaces over a field. Let
AW V ! W and BW W ! V be linear transformations. Then

x dim V det.AB  xI / D x dim W det.BA  xI /:

In other words, AB and BA have the same nonzero eigenvalues.

We can now prove the key linear algebraic result.
 
1 nC1
6.13 Lemma. The linear transformation Ui is injective for i < and
  2 2
surjective (onto) for i  12 nC1
2
.

Proof.  We prove by induction on i that Di C1 Ui has positive real eigenvalues for

i < 12 nC12 . For i D 0 this is easy to check since dim RM.n/0 D 1. Assume the

induction hypothesis for some i < 2 2  1, i.e., assume that Di Ui 1 has positive
1 nC1

eigenvalues. By Lemma 6.12, Ui 1 Di has nonnegative eigenvalues. By (6.12),

we have
! !
nC1
Di C1 Ui D Ui 1 Di C  2i Ii :
2
 
Thus the eigenvalues of Di C1 Ui are nC1  2i more than those of Ui 1 Di . Since
nC1 2
2  2i > 0, it follows that D U
i C1 i has positive eigenvalues. Hence it is
invertible,
  so U i is injective. Similarly (or by “symmetry”) Ui is surjective for
i  12 nC1
2 . t
u

The main result on the posets M.n/ now follows by a familiar argument.
 
6.14 Theorem. The poset M.n/ is graded of rank nC1 2 , rank-symmetric, rank-
unimodal, and Sperner.
 
Proof. We have already seen that M.n/ is graded of rank nC1 and rank-symmetric.
  2  
By the previous lemma, Ui is injective for i < 12 nC1
2
and surjective for i  12 nC1
2
.
The proof follows from Proposition 4.4 and Lemma 4.5. t
u

NOTE. As a consequence of Theorem 6.14, the polynomial F .M.n/; q/ D .1 C

q/.1 C q 2 /    .1 C q n / has unimodal coefficients. No combinatorial proof of this
fact is known, unlike the situation for L.m; n/ (where we mentioned the proof of
O’Hara above).
We can now determine h.n/ (as defined by (6.10)) by an argument analogous to
the proof of Theorem 6.11.
 C
6.15 Theorem. Let S 2 Rn and ˛ 2 RC . Then
$ !%!
1 nC1
f .S; ˛/  f Œn; D h.n/:
2 2
6 Young Diagrams 71

Proof. Let S D fa1 ; : : : ; an g with 0 < a1 <    < an . Let T and U be

distinct subsets of S with the same element sums, say T D far1 ; : : : ; arj g and
U D fas1 ; : : : ; ask g with r1 < r2 <    < rj and s1 < s2 <    < sk . Define
T  D fr1 ; : : : ; rj g and U  D fs1 ; : : : ; sk g, so T  ; U  2 M.n/. The following fact
is proved exactly in the same way as the analogous fact for L.m; n/ (the claim in
the proof of Theorem 6.11) and will be omitted here.
Fact. The elements T  and U  are incomparable in M.n/, i.e., neither T   U 
nor U   T  .
It is now easy to complete the proof of Theorem 6.15. Suppose that S1 ; : : : ; St are
distinct subsets of S with the same element sums. By the above fact, fS1 ; : : : ; St g
is an antichain in M.n/. Hence t cannot exceed the size of the largest antichain
in M.n/. By Theorem 6.14, the size of the largest antichain in M.n/ is the  size
pb 1 .nC1/c of the middle rank. By (6.11) this number is equal to f .Œn; b 12 nC1
2
c/. In
2 2
other words,
$ !%!
1 nC1
t  f Œn; ;
2 2

which is what we wanted to prove. t

u

NOTE. Theorem 6.15 is known as the weak Erdős–Moser conjecture. The original
(strong) Erdős–Moser conjecture deals with the case S R rather than S RC .
There is a difference between these two cases; for instance, h.3/ D 2 (corresponding
to S D f1; 2; 3g and ˛ D 3), while the set f1; 0; 1g has four subsets whose
elements sum to 0 (including the empty set). (Can you see where the proof of
Theorem 6.15 breaks down if we allow S R?) The original Erdős–Moser
conjecture asserts that if #S D 2m C 1, then

f .S; ˛/  f .fm; m C 1; : : : ; mg; 0/: (6.13)

This result can be proved by a somewhat tricky modification of the proof given
above for the weak case; see Exercise 5. No proof of the Erdős–Moser conjecture
(weak or strong) is known other than the one indicated here (sometimes given in a
more sophisticated context, as explained in the next Note).
NOTE. The key to the proof of Theorem 6.15 is the definition of Ui and Di which
gives the commutation relation (6.12). The reader may be wondering how anyone
managed to discover these definitions (especially that of Di ). In fact, the original
proof of Theorem 6.15 was based on the representation theory of the orthogonal Lie
algebra o.2n C 1; C/. In this context, the definitions of Ui and Di are built into the
theory of the “principal subalgebras” of o.2n C 1; C/. R.A. Proctor was the first to
remove the representation theory from the proof and present it solely in terms of
linear algebra.
72 6 Young Diagrams

Notes for Chap. 6

For an undergraduate level introduction to the theory of partitions, see Andrews and
Eriksson [3]. A more extensive treatment is given by Andrews [2], while a brief
introduction appears in [107, Sect. 1.8].
As already mentioned in the text, the rank-unimodality
  of L.m; n/, that is, of the
coefficients of the q-binomial coefficient mCnm
is due to J. J. Sylvester [112], with
a combinatorial proof later given by K. M. O’Hara [81]. An explication of O’Hara’s
work was given by D. Zeilberger [123].
The unimodality of the coefficients of the polynomial .1 Cq/.1 Cq 2 /    .1 Cq n /
is implicit in the work of E.B. Dynkin [30], [31, p. 332]. J.W.B. Hughes was the first
to observe explicitly that this polynomial arises as a special case of Dynkin’s work.
The Spernicity of L.m; n/ and M.n/ and a proof of the Erdős–Moser conjecture
were first given by Stanley [101]. It was mentioned in the text above that R.A.
Proctor [88] was the first to remove the representation theory from the proof and
present it solely in terms of linear algebra.
For two proofs of Lemma 6.12, see W.V. Parker [82] and J. Schmid [98].

Exercises for Chap. 6

1. (a) Let A.m; n/ denote the adjacency matrix (over R) of the Hasse diagram of
L.m; n/. Show that if A.m; n/ is nonsingular, then mCn m is even.
(b) (unsolved) For which m and n is A.m; n/ nonsingular? The pairs .m; n/ with
this property for m  n and mCn  13 are .1; 1/, .1; 3/, .1; 5/, .3; 3/, .1; 7/,
.1; 9/, .3; 7/, .5; 5/, .1; 11/, .3; 9/, and .5; 7/.
(c) (very difficult) Show that every irreducible (over Q) factor of the characteris-
tic polynomial of the matrix A.m; n/ has degree at most 12 .2.m C n C 1//,
where  is the Euler phi-function (defined on page 85).
2. (a) (moderately difficult) Show that the number c.m; n/ of cover relations in
L.m; n/, i.e., the number of pairs .; / of partitions in L.m; n/ for which
 covers , is given by

.m C n  1/Š
c.m; n/ D :
.m  1/Š .n  1/Š

(b) (considerably more difficult) (*) Show that the number d.m; n/ of pairs
.; / of elements in L.m; n/ for which    is given by

.m C n/Š .m C n C 1/Š
d.m; n/ D :
mŠ .m C 1/Š nŠ .n C 1/Š
Exercises for Chap. 6 73

3. (difficult) (*) Note that L.m; n/ is the set of all partitions  in Young’s lattice Y
satisfying   hnm i, the partition with m parts equal to n. Let Y denote the set
of all partitions   . Is Y always rank-unimodal?
4. (a) Find an explicit order matching W L.2; n/i ! L.2; n/i C1 for i < n.
(b) (more difficult) Do the same for L.3; n/i ! L.3; n/i C1 for i < 3n=2.
(c) (even more difficult) Do the same for L.4; n/i ! L.4; n/i C1 for i < 2n.
(d) (unsolved) Do the same for L.5; n/i ! L.5; n/i C1 for i < 5n=2.
5. Assume that M.j /  M.k/ is rank-symmetric, rank-unimodal, and Sperner.
Here M.k/ denotes the dual of M.k/, i.e., x  y in M.k/ if and only if
y  x in M.k/. (Actually M.k/ Š M.k/ , but this is not needed here.) Deduce
the original Erdős–Moser conjecture given by (6.13), namely, if S R and
#S D 2m C 1, then

f .S; ˛/  f .fm; m C 1; : : : ; mg; 0/:

NOTE. If P and Q are posets, then the direct product P  Q is the poset on the
set f.x; y/ W x 2 P; y 2 Qg satisfying .x; y/  .x 0 ; y 0 / if and only if x  x 0 in
P and y  y 0 in Q.
6. (unsolved) Show that L.m; n/ has a symmetric chain decomposition. This is
known to be true for m  4.
Chapter 7
Enumeration Under Group Action

In Chaps. 5 and 6 we considered the quotient poset Bn =G, where G is a subgroup

of the symmetric group Sn . If pi is the number of elements of rank i of this poset,
then the sequence p0 ; p1 ; : : : ; pn is rank-symmetric and rank-unimodal. Thus it is
natural to ask whether there is some nice formula for the numbers pi . For instance,
  5.9 pi is the number of nonisomorphic graphs with m vertices (where
in Theorem
n D m2 ) and i edges; is there some nice formula for this number? For the group
Gmn D Sn o Sm of Theorem 6.6 we obtained a simple generating function P for pi
(i.e., a formula for the rank-generating function F .Bmn =Gmn ; q/ D i pi q i ), but
this was a very special situation. In this chapter we will present a general theory
for enumerating inequivalent objects subject to a group of symmetries, which will
include a formula for the rank-generating functions F .Bn =G; q/. The chief architect
of this theory is Pólya (though much of it was anticipated by Redfield) and hence is
often called Pólya’s theory of enumeration or just Pólya theory. See the references
at the end of this chapter for further historical information.
Pólya theory is most easily understood in terms of “colorings” of some geometric
or combinatorial object. For instance, consider a row of five squares:

In how many ways can we color the squares using n colors? Each square can be
colored any of the n colors, so there are n5 ways in all. These colorings can by
indicated as

A B C D E

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 75

Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 7,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
76 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

where A; B; C; D; and E are the five colors. Now assume that we are allowed to
rotate the row of five squares 180ı and that two colorings are considered the same
if one can be obtained from the other by such a rotation. (We may think that we
have cut the row of five squares out of paper and colored them on one side.) We say
that two colorings are equivalent if they are the same or can be transformed into
one another by a 180ı rotation. The first naive assumption is that every coloring
is equivalent to exactly one other (besides itself), so the number of inequivalent
colorings is n5 =2. Clearly this reasoning cannot be correct since n5 =2 is not always
an integer! The problem, of course, is that some colorings stay the same when we
rotate 180ı. In fact, these are exactly the colorings

A B C B A

where A; B; and C are any three colors. There are n3 such colorings, so the total
number of inequivalent colorings is given by

1
.number of colorings which don’t equal their 180ı rotation/
2

C.number of colorings which equal their 180ı rotation/

1 5
D .n  n3 / C n3
2
1
D .n5 C n3 /:
2
Pólya theory gives a systematic method for obtaining formulas of this sort for any
underlying symmetry group.
The general setup is the following. Let X be a finite set and G a subgroup of the
symmetric group SX . Think of G as a group of symmetries of X . Let C be another
set (which may be infinite), which we think of as a set of “colors.” A coloring of X
is a function f W X ! C . For instance, X could be the set of four squares of a 2  2
chessboard, labelled as follows:

1 2
3 4

Let C D fr; b; yg (the colors red, blue, and yellow). A typical coloring of X
would then look like
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 77

r b
y r

The above diagram thus indicates the function f W X ! C given by f .1/ D

r; f .2/ D b; f .3/ D y; f .4/ D r.
NOTE. We could work in the slightly greater generality of a group G acting on the
set X , i.e., we are given a homomorphism 'W G ! SX that need not be injective.
However, we then have a well-defined induced injective homomorphism W H !
SX , where H D G=.ker '/. The results obtained below for H are identical to those
we get for G, so nothing is lost by assuming that ' is injective. In this case we can
identify G with its image '.G/.
We define two colorings f and g to be equivalent (or G-equivalent, when it is
G
necessary to specify the group), denoted f
g or f
g, if there exists an element
2 G such that
g. .x// D f .x/ for all x 2 X :
We may write this condition more succinctly as g D f , where g denotes the
composition of functions (from right to left). It is easy to check, using the fact that
G is a group, that
is an equivalence relation. One should think that equivalent
functions are the same “up to symmetry.”
7.1 Example. Let X be the 2  2 chessboard and C D fr; b; yg as above. There
are many possible choices of a symmetry group G, and this will affect when two
colorings are equivalent. For instance, consider the following groups:
• G1 consists of only the identity permutation .1/.2/.3/.4/.
• G2 is the group generated by a vertical reflection. It consists of the two elements
.1/.2/.3/.4/ (the identity element) and .1; 2/.3; 4/ (the vertical reflection).
• G3 is the group generated by a reflection in the main diagonal. It consists of the
two elements .1/.2/.3/.4/ (the identity element) and .1/.4/.2; 3/ (the diagonal
reflection).
• G4 is the group of all rotations of X . It is a cyclic group of order four with
elements .1/.2/.3/.4/, .1; 2; 4; 3/, .1; 4/.2; 3/, and .1; 3; 4; 2/.
• G5 is the dihedral group of all rotations and reflections of X . It has eight
elements, namely, the four elements of G4 and the four reflections .1; 2/.3; 4/,
.1; 3/.2; 4/, .1/.4/.2; 3/, and .2/.3/.1; 4/.
• G6 is the symmetric group of all 24 permutations of X . Although this is a
perfectly valid group of symmetries, it no longer has any connection with the
geometric representation of X as the squares of a 2  2 chessboard.
Consider the inequivalent colorings of X with two red squares, one blue square, and
one yellow square, in each of the six cases above.
78 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

.G1 / There are 12 colorings in all with two red squares, one blue square, and one
yellow square, and all are inequivalent under the trivial group (the group with
one element). In general, whenever G is the trivial group then two colorings
are equivalent if and only if they are the same [why?].
.G2 / There are now six inequivalent colorings, represented by

r r r b r y b y r b r y
b y r y r b r r y r b r

Each equivalence class contains two elements.

.G3 / Now there are seven classes, represented by

r r r r b y y b r b b r y r
b y y b r r r r y r r y r b

The first five classes contain two elements each and the last two classes
only one element. Although G2 and G3 are isomorphic as abstract groups,
as permutation groups they have a different structure. Specifically, the
generator .1; 2/.3; 4/ of G2 has two cycles of length two, while the generator
.1/.4/.2; 3/ has two cycles of length one and one of length two. As we will
see below, it is the lengths of the cycles of the elements of G that determine
the sizes of the equivalence classes. This explains why the number of classes
for G2 and G3 is different.
(G4 ) There are three classes, each with four elements. The size of each class
is equal to the order of the group because none of the colorings have any
symmetry with respect to the group, i.e., for any coloring f , the only group
element that fixes f (so f D f ) is the identity ( D .1/.2/.3/.4/).

r r r r r b
y b b y y r

(G5 ) Under the full dihedral group there are now two classes.

r r r b
b y y r
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 79

The first class has eight elements and the second four elements. In general, the
size of a class is the index in G of the subgroup fixing some fixed coloring in
that class [why?]. For instance, the subgroup fixing the second coloring above
is f.1/.2/.3/.4/; .1; 4/.2/.3/g, which has index four in the dihedral group of
order eight.
(G6 ) Under the group S4 of all permutations of the squares there is clearly only
one class, with all 12 colorings. In general, for any set X if the group is the
symmetric group SX then two colorings are equivalent if and only if each
color appears the same number of times [why?].
Our object in general is to count the number of equivalence classes of colorings
which use each color a specified number of times. We will put the information into
a generating function—a polynomial whose coefficients are the numbers we seek.
Consider for example the set X , the group G D G5 (the dihedral group), and the
set C D fr; b; yg of colors in Example 7.1 above. Let .i; j; k/ be the number of
inequivalent colorings using red i times, blue j times, and yellow k times. Think of
the colors r; b; y as variables and form the polynomial
X
FG .r; b; y/ D .i; j; k/r i b j y k :
i Cj CkD4

Note that we sum only over i; j; k satisfying i C j C k D 4 since a total of four

colors will be used to color the four-element set X . The reader should check that

FG .r; b; y/ D .r 4 C b 4 C y 4 / C .r 3 b C rb 3 C r 3 y C ry 3 C b 3 y C by 3 /
C2.r 2 b 2 C r 2 y 2 C b 2 y 2 / C 2.r 2 by C rb 2 y C rby 2 /:

For instance, the coefficient of r 2 by is two because, as we have seen above, there
are two inequivalent colorings using the colors r; r; b; y. Note that FG .r; b; y/ is a
symmetric function of the variables r; b; y (i.e., it stays the same if we permute the
variables in any way), because insofar as counting inequivalent colorings goes, it
makes no difference what names we give the colors. As a special case we may ask
for the total number of inequivalent colorings with four colors. This is obtained by
setting r D b D y D 1 in FG .r; b; y/ [why?], yielding FG .1; 1; 1/ D 3 C 6C
2  3 C 2  3 D 21.
What happens to the generating function FG in the above example when we
use the n colors r1 ; r2 ; : : : ; rn (which can be thought of as different shades of red)?
Clearly all that matters are the multiplicities of the colors, without regard for their
order. In other words, there are five cases: (a) all four colors the same, (b) one color
used three times and another used once, (c) two colors used twice each, (d) one color
used twice and two others once each, and (e) four colors used once each. These five
cases correspond to the five partitions of 4, i.e., the five ways of writing 4 as a sum
of positive integers without regard to order: 4, 3 C 1, 2 C 2, 2 C 1 C 1, 1 C 1 C 1 C 1.
Our generating function becomes
80 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

X X
FG .r1 ; r2 ; : : : ; rn / D ri4 C ri3 rj (7.1)
i i ¤j
X X X
C2 ri2 rj2 C 2 ri2 rj rk C 3 ri rj rk rl ; (7.2)
i <j i ¤j i <j <k<l
i ¤k
j <k

where the indices in each sum lie between 1 and n. If we set all variables equal to one
(obtaining the total number of colorings with n colors), then simple combinatorial
reasoning yields
! ! !
n n1 n
FG .1; 1; : : : ; 1/ D n C n.n  1/ C 2 C 2n C3
2 2 4
1 4
D .n C 2n3 C 3n2 C 2n/: (7.3)
8
Note that the polynomial (7.3) has the following description: the denominator 8 is
the order of the group G5 , and the coefficient of ni in the numerator is just the
number of permutations in G5 with i cycles! For instance, the coefficient of n2 is
3, and G5 has the three elements .1; 2/.3; 4/, .1; 3/.2; 4/, and .1; 4/.2; 3/ with two
cycles. We want to prove a general result of this nature.
The basic tool which we will use is a simple result from the theory of permutation
groups known as Burnside’s lemma. It was actually first proved by Cauchy when G
is transitive (i.e., jY =Gj D 1 in Lemma 7.2 below) and by Frobenius in the general
case and is sometimes called the Cauchy–Frobenius lemma.
7.2 Lemma (Burnside’s lemma). Let Y be a finite set and G a subgroup of SY .
For each 2 G, let
Fix. / D fy 2 Y W .y/ D yg;
so #Fix. / is the number of cycles of length one in the permutation . Let Y =G be
the set of orbits of G. Then
1 X
jY =Gj D #Fix. /:
#G 2G

An equivalent form of Burnside’s lemma is the statement that the average number
of elements of Y fixed by an element of G is equal to the number of orbits. Before
proceeding to the proof, let us consider an example.
7.3 Example. Let Y D fa; b; c; d g,

G D f.a/.b/.c/.d /; .a; b/.c; d /; .a; c/.b; d /; .a; d /.b; c/g;

and
G 0 D f.a/.b/.c/.d /; .a; b/.c/.d /; .a/.b/.c; d /; .a; b/.c; d /g:
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 81

Both groups are isomorphic to Z2  Z2 (compare Example 5.1(c) and (d)).

By Burnside’s lemma the number of orbits of G is 14 .4 C 0 C 0 C 0/ D 1. Indeed,
given any two elements i; j 2 Y , it is clear by inspection that there is a 2 G
(which happens to be unique) such that .i / D j . On the other hand, the number of
orbits of G 0 is 14 .4 C 2 C 2 C 0/ D 2. Indeed, the two orbits are fa; bg and fc; d g.
Proof of Burnside’s Lemma. For y 2 Y let Gy D f 2 GW  y D yg (the set of
permutations fixing y). Then
1 X 1 X X
#Fix. / D 1
#G 2G #G 2G y2Y
yDy

1 X X
D 1
#G y2Y 2G
yDy

1 X
D #Gy :
#G y2Y

Now (as in the proof of Lemma 5.6) the multiset of elements  y, 2 G, contains
every element in the orbit Gy the same number of times, namely #G=#Gy times.
Thus y occurs #G=#Gy times among the  y, so
#G
D #Gy :
#Gy
Therefore
1 X 1 X #G
#Fix. / D
#G 2G #G y2Y #Gy
X 1
D :
y2Y
#Gy

How many times does a term 1=#O appear in the above sum, where O is a fixed
orbit? We are asking for the number of y such that Gy D O. But Gy D O if and
only if y 2 O, so 1=#O appears #O times. Thus each orbit gets counted exactly
once, so the above sum is equal to the number of orbits. 

7.4 Example. How many inequivalent colorings of the vertices of a regular hexagon
H are there using n colors, under cyclic symmetry? Let Cn be the set of all n-
colorings of H . Let G be the group of all permutations of Cn which permute the
colors cyclically, so G Š Z6 . We are asking for the number of orbits of G [why?].
We want to apply Burnside’s lemma, so for each of the six elements  of G we need
to compute the number of colorings fixed by that element. Let be a generator
of G.
82 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

•  D 1 (the identity): All n6 colorings are fixed by .

•  D ; 1 : Only the n colorings with all colors equal are fixed.
•  D 2 ; 4 : Any coloring of the form ababab is fixed (writing the colors
linearly in the order they appear around the hexagon, starting at any fixed vertex).
There are n choices for a and n for b, so n2 colorings in all.
•  D 3 : The fixed colorings are of the form abcabc, so n3 in all.
Hence by Burnside’s lemma, we have
1 6
number of orbits D .n C n3 C 2n2 C 2n/:
6

The reader who has followed the preceding example will have no trouble
understanding the following result.
7.5 Theorem. Let G be a group of permutations of a finite set X . Then the number
NG .n/ of inequivalent (with respect to G) n-colorings of X is given by
1 X c. /
NG .n/ D n ; (7.4)
#G 2G

where c. / denotes the number of cycles of .

Proof. Let n denote the action of 2 G on the set Cn of n-colorings of X . We want

to determine the set Fix. n /, so that we can apply Burnside’s lemma. Let C be the
set of n colors. If f W X ! C is a coloring fixed by , then for all x 2 X we have

f .x/ D n  f .x/ D f . .x//:

Thus f 2 Fix. n / if and only if f .x/ D f . .x//. Hence f .x/ D f . k .x// for
any k  1 [why?]. The elements y of X of the form k .x/ for k  1 are just the
elements of the cycle of containing x. Thus to obtain f 2 Fix. n /, we should
take the cycles 1 ; : : : ; c. / of and color each element of i the same color.
There are n choices for each i , so nc. / colorings in all fixed by . In other words,
#Fix. n / D nc. / , and the proof follows by Burnside’s lemma. t
u

We would now like not just to count the total number of inequivalent colorings
with n colors but more strongly to specify the number of occurrences of each color.
We will need to use not just the number c. / of cycles of each 2 G, but rather
the lengths of each of the cycles of . Thus given a permutation of an n-element
set X , define the type of to be

type. / D .c1 ; c2 ; : : : ; cn /;

where has ci i cycles. For instance, if D 4; 7; 3; 8; 2; 10; 11; 1; 6; 9; 5, then

type. / D type .1; 4; 8/.2; 7; 11; 5/.3/.6; 10; 9/

D .1; 0; 2; 1; 0; 0; 0; 0; 0; 0; 0/:
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 83

P
Note that we always have i i ci D n [why?]. Define the cycle indicator of to be
the monomial
Z D zc11 zc22    zcnn :
(Many other notations are used for the cycle indicator. The use of Z comes from the
German word Zyklus for cycle. The original paper of Pólya was written in German.)
Thus for the example above, we have Z D z1 z23 z4 .
Now given a subgroup G of SX , the cycle indicator (or cycle index polynomial)
of G is defined by
1 X
ZG D ZG .z1 ; : : : ; zn / D Z :
#G 2G

Thus ZG (also denoted PG , Cyc.G/, etc.) is a polynomial in the variables z1 ; : : : ; zn .

7.6 Example. If X consists of the vertices of a square and G is the group of rotations
of X (a cyclic group of order 4), then
1 4
ZG D .z C z22 C 2z4 /:
4 1
If reflections are also allowed (so G is the dihedral group of order 8), then
1 4
ZG D .z C 3z22 C 2z21 z2 C 2z4 /:
8 1

We are now ready to state the main result of this chapter.

7.7 Theorem (Pólya’s theorem, 1937). Let G be a group of permutations of the
n-element set X . Let C D fr1 ; r2 ; : : :g be a set of colors. Let .i1 ; i2 ; : : :/ be the
number of inequivalent (under the action of G) colorings f W X ! C such that
color rj is used ij times. Define
X
FG .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/ D .i1 ; i2 ; : : :/r1i1 r2i2    :
i1 ;i2 ;:::

(Thus FG is a polynomial or a power series in the variables r1 ; r2 ; : : :, depending

on whether or not C is finite or infinite.) Then
j j j
FG .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/ D ZG .r1 Cr2 Cr3 C  ; r12 Cr22 Cr32 C   ; : : :; r1 Cr2 Cr3 C  ; : : :/:
P j
(In other words, substitute i ri for zj in ZG .)
Before giving the proof let us consider an example.
84 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

7.8 Example. Suppose that in Example 7.6 our set of colors is C D fa; b; c; d g,
and that we take G to be the group of cyclic symmetries. Then

1 
FG .a; b; c; d / D .aCbCcCd /4 C.a2 Cb 2 Cc 2 Cd 2 /2 C2.a4 Cb 4 Cc 4 Cd 4 /
4
D .a4 C    /C.a3 bC    /C2.a2 b 2 C    /C3.a2 bcC    /C6abcd:

An expression such as .a2 b 2 C    / stands for the sum of all monomials in the
variables a; b; c; d with exponents 2; 2; 0; 0 (in some order). The coefficient of all
such monomials is 2, indicating two inequivalent colorings using one color twice
and another color twice. If instead G were the full dihedral group, we would get
1
FG .a; b; c; d / D .aCbCcCd /4 C3.a2 Cb 2 Cc 2 Cd 2 /2
8

C 2.aCbCcCd /2 .a2 Cb 2 Cc 2 Cd 2 /C2.a4 Cb 4 Cc 4 Cd 4 /
D .a4 C    /C.a3 bC    /C2.a2 b 2 C    /C2.a2 bcC    /C3abcd:

Proof of Pólya’s Theorem. Let #X D t and i1 C i2 C    D t, where each ij  0.

Let i D .i1 ; i2 ; : : :/, and let Ci denote the set of all colorings of X with color rj
used ij times. The group G acts on Ci , since if f 2 Ci and 2 G, then  f 2 Ci .
(“Rotating” a colored object does not change how many times each color appears.)
Let i denote the action of on Ci . We want to apply Burnside’s lemma to compute
the number of orbits, so we need to find #Fix. i /.
In order for f 2 Fix. i /, we must color X so that (a) in any cycle of , all
the elements get the same color, and (b) the color rj appears ij times. Consider the
product
Y j j
H D .r1 C r2 C    /cj . / ;
j

where cj . / is the number of j -cycles (cycles of length j ) of . When we expand

j j
this product as a sum of monomials r1 1 r2 2    , we get one of these monomials by
j
choosing a term rk from each factor of H and multiplying these terms together.
j
Choosing rk corresponds to coloring all the elements of some j -cycle with rk . Since
j j j
a factor r1 C r2 C    occurs precisely cj . / times in H , choosing a term rk from
every factor corresponds to coloring X so that every cycle is monochromatic (i.e.,
j
all the elements of that cycle get the same color). The product of these terms rk
j j
will be the monomial r1 1 r2 2    , where we have used color rk a total of jk times. It
follows that the coefficient of rii1 r2i2    in H is equal to #Fix. i /. Thus
X
H D #Fix. i /r1i1 r2i2    : (7.5)
i
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 85

Now sum both sides of (7.5) over all 2 G and divide by #G. The left-hand side
becomes
1 XY j j
.r1 C r2 C    /cj . / D ZG .r1 C r2 C    ; r12 C r22 C    ; : : :/:
#G 2G j

On the other hand, the right-hand side becomes

" #
X 1 X
#Fix. i / r1i1 r2i2    :
#G 2G
i
By Burnside’s lemma, the expression in brackets is just the number of orbits of i
acting on Ci , i.e., the number of inequivalent colorings using color rj a total of ij
times, as was to be proved. 
7.9 Example (necklaces). A necklace of length ` is a circular arrangement of `
(colored) beads. Two necklaces are considered the same if they are cyclic rotations
of one another. Let X be a set of ` (uncolored) beads, say X D f1; 2; : : : ; `g.
Regarding the beads as being placed equidistantly on a circle in the order 1; 2; : : : ; `,
let G be the cyclic group of rotations of X . Thus if is the cycle .1; 2; : : : ; `/, then
G D f1; ; 2 ; : : : ; `1 g. For example, if ` D 6 then the elements of G are

0 D .1/.2/.3/.4/.5/.6/;
D .1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6/;
2 D .1; 3; 5/.2; 4; 6/;
3 D .1; 4/.2; 5/.3; 6/;
4 D .1; 5; 3/.2; 6; 4/;
5 D .1; 6; 5; 4; 3; 2/:

In general, if d is the greatest common divisor of m and ` (denoted d D gcd.m; `/),

then m has d cycles of length `=d . An integer m satisfies 1  m  ` and
gcd.m; `/ D d if and only if 1  m=d  `=d and gcd.m=d; `=d / D 1. Hence the
number of such integers m is given by the Euler phi-function (or totient function)
.`=d /, which by definition is equal to the number of integers 1  i  `=d such
that gcd.i; `=d / D 1. As an aside, recall that .k/ can be computed by the formula
Y  1

.k/ D k 1 : (7.6)
p
pjk
p prime

For instance, .1000/ D 1000.1  12 /.1  15 / D 400. Putting all this together gives
the following formula for the cycle enumerator ZG .z1 ; : : : ; z` /:
1X
ZG .z1 ; : : : ; z` / D .`=d /zd`=d ;
`
d j`
86 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

or (substituting `=d for d ),

1X `=d
ZG .z1 ; : : : ; z` / D .d /zd :
`
d j`

There follows from Pólya’s theorem the following result (originally proved by
MacMahon (1854–1929) before Pólya discovered his general result).
7.10 Theorem.
(a) The number N` .n/ of n-colored necklaces of length ` is given by
1X
N` .n/ D .`=d /nd : (7.7)
`
d j`

(b) We have
1X
FG .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/ D .d /.r1d C r2d C    /`=d :
`
d j`

NOTE. (b) reduces to (a) if r1 D r2 D    D 1. Moreover, since clearly N` .1/ D 1,

putting n D 1 in (7.7) yields the well-known identity
X
.`=d / D `:
d j`

What if we are allowed to flip necklaces over, not just rotate them? Now the
group becomes the dihedral group of order 2`, and the corresponding inequivalent
colorings are called dihedral necklaces. We leave to the reader to work out the cycle
enumerators
0 1
1 X
@ `=d
.d /zd C mz21 zm1
2 C mzm 2
A ; if ` D 2m;
2`
d j`
0 1
1 @X `=d A ; if ` D 2m C 1:
.d /zd C `z1 zm2
2`
d j`

7.11 Example. Let G D S` , the group of all permutations of f1; 2; : : : ; `g D X .

Thus for instance
1 3
ZS3 .z1 ; z2 ; z3 / D .z C 3z1 z2 C 2z3 /;
6 1
1 4
ZS4 .z1 ; z2 ; z3 ; z4 / D .z C 6z21 z2 C 3z22 C 8z1 z3 C 6z4 /:
24 1
It is easy to count the number of inequivalent colorings in Ci . If two colorings of X
use each color the same number of times, then clearly there is some permutation of
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 87

X which sends one of the colorings to the other. Hence Ci consists of a single orbit.
Thus
X
FS` .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/ D r1i1 r2i2    ;
i1 Ci2 CD`

the sum of all monomials of degree `.

To count the total number of inequivalent n-colorings, note that
X 1
FS` .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/x ` D ; (7.8)
.1  r1 x/.1  r2 x/   
`0

P j
since if we expand each factor on the right-hand side into the series j 0 ri x j and
`
multiply, the coefficient of x will just be the sum of all monomials of degree `.
For fixed n, let fn .`/ denote the number of inequivalent n-colorings of X . Since
fn .`/ D FS` .1; 1; : : : ; 1/ (n 1’s in all), there follows from (7.8) that
X 1
fn .`/x ` D :
.1  x/n
`0

The right-hand side can be expanded (e.g., by Taylor’s theorem) as

!
1 X nC`1
D x` :
.1  x/n `
`0

Hence
!
nC`1
fn .`/ D :
`

It is natural to ask whether there might be a more direct proof of such a simple result.
This is actually a standard result in elementary enumerative combinatorics. For fixed
` and n we want the number of solutions to i1 C i2 C    C in D ` in nonnegative
integers.
 Suppose
 that we arrange n  1 vertical bars and ` dots is a line. There
are nC`1`
such arrangements since there are a total of n C `  1 positions, and
we choose ` of them in which to place a dot. An example of such an arrangement
for ` D 8 and n D 7 is

The number of dots in each “compartment,” read from left to right, gives the
numbers i1 ; : : : ; in . For the example above, we get .i1 ; : : : ; i7 / D .0; 0; 2; 1; 0; 3; 2/.
Since this correspondence between solutions to i1 C i2 C    C in D ` and
arrangements of bars and dots is clearly a bijection, we get nC`1 `
solutions as
claimed.
88 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

Recall (Theorem 7.5) that the number of inequivalent n-colorings of X (with

respect to any group G of permutations of X ) is given by
1 X c. /
n ;
#G 2G

where c. / denotes the number of cycles of . Hence for G D S` we get the

identity
!
1 X c. / nC`1
n D
`Š 2S `
`

1
D n.n C 1/.n C 2/    .n C `  1/:
`Š
Multiplying by `Š yields
X
nc. / D n.n C 1/.n C 2/    .n C `  1/: (7.9)
2S`

Equivalently [why?], if we define c.`; k/ to be the number of permutations in S`

with k cycles (called a signless Stirling number of the first kind), then

X̀
c.`; k/x k D x.x C 1/.x C 2/    .x C `  1/:
kD1

For instance, x.x C 1/.x C 2/.x C 3/ D x 4 C 6x 3 C 11x 2 C 6x, so (taking

the coefficient of x 2 ) 11 permutations in S4 have two cycles, namely, .123/.4/,
.132/.4/, .124/.3/, .142/.3/, .134/.2/, .143/.2/, .234/.1/, .243/.1/, .12/.34/,
.13/.24/, .14/.23/.
Although it was easy to compute the generating function FS` .r1 ; r2 ; : : :/ directly
without the necessity of computing the cycle indicator ZS` .z1 ; : : : ; z` /, we can still
ask whether there is a formula of some kind for this polynomial. First we determine
explicitly its coefficients.
P
7.12 Theorem. Let i ci D `. The number of permutations 2 S` with ci cycles
of length i (or equivalently, the coefficient of zc11 zc22    in `Š ZS` .z1 ; : : : ; z` /) is equal
to `Š=1c1 c1 Š 2c2 c2 Š    .
Example. The number of permutations in S15 with three 1-cycles, two 2-cycles,
and two 4-cycles is 15Š=13  3Š  22  2Š  42  2Š D 851; 350; 500.
Proof of Theorem 7.12. Fix c D .c1 ; c2 ; : : :/ and let Xc be the set of all per-
mutations 2 S` with ci cycles of length i . Given a permutation  D
a1 a2    a` in S` , construct a permutation f ./ 2 Xc as follows. Let the 1-cycles
of f ./ be .a1 /; .a2 /; : : : ; .ac1 /. Then let the 2-cycles of f ./ be .ac1 C1 ; ac1 C2 /;
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 89

.ac1 C3 ; ac1 C4 /; : : :, .ac1 C2c2 1 ; ac1 C2c2 /. Then let the 3-cycles of f ./ be .ac1 C2c2 C1 ;
ac1 C 2c2 C 2 ; ac1 C 2c2 C 3 /, .ac1 C 2c2 C 4 ; ac1 C 2c2 C 5 ; ac1 C 2c2 C 6 /; : : : ; .ac1 C 2c2 C 3c3  2 ;
ac1 C2c2 C3c3 1 ; ac1 C2c2 C3c3 /, etc., continuing until we reach a` and have produced
a permutation in Xc . For instance, if ` D 11; c1 D 3; c2 D 2; c4 D 1, and
 D 4; 9; 6; 11; 7; 1; 3; 8; 10; 2; 5, then

f ./ D .4/.9/.6/.11; 7/.1; 3/.8; 10; 2; 5/:

We have defined a function f W S` ! Xc . Given 2 Xc , what is #f 1 . /,

the number of permutations sent to by f ? A cycle of length i can be written in i
ways, namely,

.b1 ; b2 ; : : : ; bi / D .b2 ; b3 ; : : : ; bi ; b1 / D    D .bi ; b1 ; b2 ; : : : ; bi 1 /:

Moreover, there are ci Š ways to order the ci cycles of length i . Hence

#f 1 . / D c1 Š c2 Š c3 Š    1c1 2c2 3c3    ;

the same number for any 2 Xc . It follows that

#S`
#Xc D
c1 Šc2 Š    1c1 2c2   
`Š
D ;
c1 Šc2 Š    1c1 2c2   
as was to be proved. 
As for the polynomial ZS` itself, we have the following result. Write exp y D e y .
7.13 Theorem. We have
X  
x2 x3
ZS` .z1 ; z2 ; : : :/x D exp z1 x C z2
`
C z3 C :
2 3
`0

Proof. There are some sophisticated ways to prove this theorem which “explain”
why the exponential function appears, but we will be content here with a “naive”
computational proof. Write
 
x2 x3
exp z1 x C z2 C z3 C
2 3
x2 x3
D e z1 x  e z2 2  e z3 3 
0 10 10 1
X zn x n X zn x 2n X zn x 3n
D@ 1 A@ 2
n nŠ
A@ 3
n nŠ
A :
n0
nŠ n0
2 n0
3
90 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

When we multiply this product out, the coefficient of zc11 zc22    x ` , where ` D c1 C
2c2 C    , is given by
 
1 1 `Š
D :
1c1 c1 Š 2c2 c2 Š    `Š 1c1 c1 Š 2c2 c2 Š   

By Theorem 7.12 this is just the coefficient of zc11 zc22    in ZS` .z1 ; z2 ; : : :/, as was
to be proved. t
u

As a check of Theorem 7.13, set each zi D n to obtain

X  
x2 x3
ZS` .n; n; : : :/x ` D exp nx C n C n C   
2 3
`0
 
x2 x3
D exp n.x C C C/
2 3
 
D exp n log.1  x/1
1
D
.1  x/n
!
X n
D .x/`
`
`0
!
X nC`1
D x` ;
`
`0
   
the last step following from the easily checked equality n `
D .1/` nC`1`
.
`
Equating coefficients of x in the first and last terms of the above string of equalities
gives
!
nC`1
ZS` .n; n; : : :/ D
`

n.n C 1/    .n C `  1/
D ;
`Š
agreeing with Theorem 7.5 and (7.9).
Theorem 7.13 has many enumerative applications. We give one such result here
as an example.
7.14 Proposition. Let f .n/ be the number of permutations 2 Sn of odd order.
Equivalently, k D  (the identity permutation) for some odd k. Then
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 91

(
12  32  52    .n  1/2 ; n even;
f .n/ D
12  32  52    .n  2/2  n; n odd:

Proof. A permutation has odd order if and only if all its cycle lengths are odd.
Hence [why?]

f .n/ D nŠ ZSn .zi D 1; i oddI zi D 0; i even/:

Making this substitution in Theorem 7.13 gives

X  
xn x3 x5
f .n/ D exp x C C C :
n0
nŠ 3 5

x2 x3
Since  log.1  x/ D x C 2 C 3 C    , we get [why?]
X  
xn 1
f .n/ D exp . log.1  x/ C log.1 C x//
n0
nŠ 2
 
1 1Cx
D exp log
2 1x
r
1Cx
D :
1x
We
p therefore need to find the coefficients in the power series expansion of
.1 C x/=.1  x/ at x D 0. There is a simple trick for doing so:
r
1Cx
D .1 C x/.1  x 2 /1=2
1x
!
X 1=2
D .1 C x/ .x 2 /m
m0
m
!
X 1=2
D .1/m .x 2m C x 2mC1 /;
m0
m

where by definition
!     
1=2 1 1 3 2m  1
D     :
m mŠ 2 2 2
n
p is now a routine computation to check that the coefficient of x =nŠ in
It
.1 C x/=.1  x/ agrees with the claimed value of f .n/. t
u
92 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

Quotients of Boolean Algebras. We will show how to apply Pólya theory to the
problem of counting the number of elements of given rank in a quotient poset
BX =G. Here X is a finite set, BX is the boolean algebra of all subsets of X , and G is
a group of permutations of X (with an induced action on BX ). What do colorings of
X have to do with subsets? The answer is very simple: a 2-coloring f W X ! f0; 1g
corresponds to a subset Sf of X by the usual rule

s 2 Sf ” f .s/ D 1:

Note that two 2-colorings f and g are G-equivalent if and only if Sf and Sg are in
the same orbit of G (acting on BX ). Thus the number of inequivalent 2-colorings f
of X with i values equal to 1 is just #.BX =G/i , the number of elements of BX =G
of rank i . As an immediate application of Pólya’s theorem (Theorem 7.7) we obtain
the following result.
7.15 Corollary. We have
X
#.BX =G/i q i D ZG .1 C q; 1 C q 2 ; 1 C q 3 ; : : :/:
i

Proof. If .i; j / denotes the number of inequivalent 2-colorings of X with the

colors 0 and 1 such that 0 is used j times and 1 is used i times (so i C j D #X ),
then by Pólya’s theorem we have
X
.i; j /x i y j D ZG .x C y; x 2 C y 2 ; x 3 C y 3 ; : : :/:
i;j

Setting x D q and y D 1 yields the desired result [why?]. t

u

Combining Corollary 7.15 with the rank-unimodality of BX =G (Theorem 5.8)

yields the following corollary.
7.16 Corollary. For any finite group G of permutations of a finite set X , the
polynomial ZG .1 C q; 1 C q 2 ; 1 C q 3 ; : : :/ has symmetric, unimodal, integer
coefficients.
7.17 Example. (a) For the poset P of Example 5.4(a) we have G D f.1/.2/.3/,
.1; 2/.3/g, so ZG .z1 ; z2 ; z3 / D 12 .z31 C z1 z2 /. Hence

X 3
1 
.#Pi /q i D .1 C q/3 C .1 C q/.1 C q 2 /
i D0
2

D 1 C 2q C 2q 2 C q 3 :

(b) For the poset P of Example 5.4(b) we have G D f.1/.2/.3/.4/.5/, .1; 2; 3; 4; 5/,
.1; 3; 5; 2; 4/, .1; 4; 2; 5; 3/, .1; 5; 4; 3; 2/g, so ZG .z1 ; z2 ; z3 ; z4 ; z5 / D 15 .z51 C
4z5 /. Hence
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 93

X 5
1 
.#Pi /q i D .1 C q/5 C 4.1 C q 5 /
i D0
5

D 1 C q C 2q 2 C 2q 3 C q 4 C q 5 :

Note that we are equivalently counting two-colored necklaces (as defined in

Example 7.9), say with colors red and blue, of length five according to the number
of blue beads.
(c) Let X be the squares of a 2  2 chessboard, labelled as follows:

1 2
3 4

Let G be the wreath product S2 o S2 , as defined in Chap. 6. Then

G D f.1/.2/.3/.4/; .1; 2/.3/.4/; .1/.2/.3; 4/; .1; 2/.3; 4/;

.1; 3/.2; 4/; .1; 4/.2; 3/; .1; 3; 2; 4/; .1; 4; 2; 3/g;
so
1 4
ZG .z1 ; z2 ; z3 ; z4 / D .z C 2z21 z2 C 3z22 C 2z4 /:
8 1
Hence
X
4
1 
.#Pi /q i D .1 C q/4 C 2.1 C q/2 .1 C q 2 / C 3.1 C q 2 /2 C 2.1 C q 4 /
i D0
4

D 1 C q C 2q 2 C q 3 C q 4
 
4
D ;
2

agreeing with Theorem 6.6.

Using more sophisticated methods (such as the representation theory of the
symmetric group), the following generalization of Corollary 7.16 can be proved:
let P .q/ be any polynomial with symmetric, unimodal, nonnegative, integer
coefficients, such as 1 C q C 3q 2 C 3q 3 C 8q 4 C 3q 5 C 3q 6 C q 7 C q 8 or
q 5 C q 6 (D 0 C 0q C    C 0q 4 C q 5 C q 6 C 0q 7 C    C 0q 11 ). Then the
polynomial ZG .P .q/; P .q 2 /; P .q 3 /; : : :/ has symmetric, unimodal, nonnegative,
integer coefficients.

Graphs. A standard application of Pólya theory is to the enumeration of noniso-

morphic graphs. We saw at the end of Chap. 5 that if M is an m-element vertex
  .2/
set, X D M2 , and Sm is the group of permutations of X induced by permutations
94 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

of M , then an orbit of i -element subsets of X may be regarded as an isomorphism

.2/
class of graphs on the vertex set M with i edges. Thus #.BX =Sm /i is the number
of nonisomorphic graphs (without loops or multiple edges) on the vertex set M
with i edges. It follows from Corollary 7.15 that if gi .m/ denotes the number of
nonisomorphic graphs with m vertices and i edges, then

.m2/
X
gi .m/q i D ZS.2/ .1 C q; 1 C q 2 ; 1 C q 3 ; : : :/:
m
i D0

Thus we would like to compute the cycle enumerator ZS.2/ .z1 ; z2 ; : : :/. If two
m
permutations and  of M have the same cycle type (number of cycles of each
length), then their actions on X also have the same cycle type [why?]. Thus for
each possible cycle type of a permutation of M (i.e., for each partition of m) we
need to compute the induced cycle type on X . We also know from Theorem 7.12
the number of permutations of M of each type. For small values of m we can pick
some permutation of each type and compute directly its action on X in order to
determine the induced cycle type. For m D 4 we have:

Cycle Cycle
lengths Induced lengths
of Number permutation 0 of 0
1; 1; 1; 1 1 .1/.2/.3/.4/ .12/.13/.14/.23/.24/.34/ 1; 1; 1; 1; 1; 1
2; 1; 1 6 .1; 2/.3/.4/ .12/.12; 23/.14; 24/.34/ 2; 2; 1; 1
3; 1 8 .1; 2; 3/.4/ .12; 23; 13/.14; 24; 34/ 3; 3
2; 2 3 .1; 2/.3; 4/ .12/.13; 24/.14; 23/.34/ 2; 2; 1; 1
4 6 .1; 2; 3; 4/ .12; 23; 34; 14/.13; 24/ 4; 2

It follows that
1 6
ZS.2/ .z1 ; z2 ; z3 ; z4 ; z5 ; z6 / D .z C 9z21 z22 C 8z23 C 6z2 z4 /:
4 24 1
If we set zi D 1 C q i and simplify, we obtain the polynomial

X
6
gi .4/q i D 1 C q C 2q 2 C 3q 3 C 2q 4 C q 5 C q 6 :
i D0

Indeed, this polynomial agrees with the rank-generating function of the poset of
Fig. 5.1.
Suppose that we instead want to count the number hi .4/ of nonisomorphic graphs
with four vertices and i edges, where now we allow at most two edges between any
.2/
two vertices. We can take M , X , and G D S4 as before, but now we have three
colors: red for no edges, blue for one edge, and yellow for two edges. A monomial
r i b j y k corresponds to a coloring with i pairs of vertices having no edges between
7 Enumeration Under Group Action 95

them, j pairs having one edge, and k pairs having two edges. The total number e of
edges is j C 2k. Hence if we let r D 1; b D q; y D q 2 , then the monomial r i b j y k
becomes q j C2k D q e . It follows that
i.i 1/
X
hi .4/q i D ZS.2/ .1 C q C q 2 ; 1 C q 2 C q 4 ; 1 C q 3 C q 6 ; : : :/
4
i D0

1 
D .1 C q C q 2 /6 C 9.1 C q C q 2 /2 .1 C q 2 C q 4 /2
24

C8.1 C q 3 C q 6 /2 C 6.1 C q 2 C q 4 /.1 C q 4 C q 8 /

D 1 C q C 3q 2 C 5q 3 C 8q 4 C 9q 5 C 12q 6 C 9q 7 C 8q 8 C 5q 9
C3q 10 C q 11 C q 12 :

The total number

P of nonisomorphic graphs on four vertices with edge multiplicities
at most two is i hi .4/ D 66.
It should now be clear that if we restrict the edge multiplicity to be r, then the
corresponding generating function is ZS.2/ .1 C q C q 2 C    C q r1 ; 1 C q 2 C q 4 C
4
   C q 2r2 ; : : :/. In particular, to obtain the total number N.r; 4/ of nonisomorphic
graphs on four vertices with edge multiplicity at most r, we simply set each zi D r,
obtaining

N.r; 4/ D ZS.2/ .r; r; r; r; r; r/

4

1 6
D .r C 9r 4 C 14r 2 /:
24
 
This is the same as number of inequivalent r-colorings of the set X D M2 (where
#M D 4) [why?].
Of course the same sort of reasoning can be applied to any number of vertices.
For five vertices our table becomes the following (using such notation as 15 to denote
a sequence of five 1’s).

Cycle Cycle
lengths Induced lengths
of Number permutation 0 of 0
15 1 .1/.2/.3/.4/.5/ .12/.13/    .45/ 110
2; 13 10 .1; 2/.3/.4/.5/ .12/.13; 23/.14; 25/.15; 25/.34/.35/.45/ 23 ; 14
3; 12 20 .1; 2; 3/.4/.5/ .12; 23; 13/.14; 24; 34/.15; 25; 35/.45/ 33 ; 1
22 ; 1 15 .1; 2/.3; 4/.5/ .12/.13; 24/.14; 23/.15; 25/.34/.35; 45/ 24 ; 12
4; 1 30 .1; 2; 3; 4/.5/ .12; 23; 34; 14/.13; 24/.15; 25; 35; 45/ 42 ; 2
3; 2 20 .1; 2; 3/.4; 5/ .12; 23; 13/.14; 25; 34; 15; 24; 35/.45/ 6; 3; 1
5 24 .1; 2; 3; 4; 5/ .12; 23; 34; 45; 15/.13; 24; 35; 14; 25/ 52
96 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

Thus
1 10
ZS.2/ .z1 ; : : : ; z10 / D .z C10z41 z32 C20z1 z33 C15z21 z42 C30z2 z24 C20z1 z3 z6 C24z25 /;
5 120 1
from which we compute

X
10
gi .5/q i D ZS.2/ .1 C q; 1 C q 2 ; : : : ; 1 C q 10 /
5
i D0

D 1 C q C 2q 2 C 4q 3 C 6q 4 C 6q 5 C 6q 6 C 4q 7 C 2q 8 C q 9 C q 10 :

For an arbitrary number m D #M of vertices there exist  explicit formulas for the
cycle indicator of the induced action of 2 SM on M2 , thereby obviating the need
to compute 0 explicitly as we did in the above tables, but the overall expression for
ZS.2/ cannot be simplified significantly or put into a simple generating function as
m
we did in Theorem 7.13. For reference we record
1 15
ZS.2/ D .z C 15z71 z42 C 40z31 z43 C 45z31 z62 C 90z1 z2 z34 C 120z1 z2 z23 z6
6 6Š 1
C144z35 C 15z31 z62 C 90z1 z2 z34 C 40z53 C 120z3 z26 /

.g0 .6/; g1 .6/; : : : ; g15 .6// D .1; 1; 2; 5; 9; 15; 21; 24; 24; 21; 15; 9; 5; 2; 1; 1/:
Moreover if u.n/ denotes the number of nonisomorphic simple graphs with n
vertices, then
.u.0/; u.1/; : : : ; u.11//
D .1; 1; 2; 4; 11; 34; 156; 1044; 12346; 274668; 12005168; 1018997864/:

A table of u.n/ for n  75 is given at

http://oeis.org/A000088/b000088.txt

In particular,

u.75/ D 91965776790545918117055311393231179873443957239
0555232344598910500368551136102062542965342147
8723210428876893185920222186100317580740213865
7140377683043095632048495393006440764501648363
4760490012493552274952950606265577383468983364
6883724923654397496226869104105041619919159586
8518775275216748149124234654756641508154401414
8480274454866344981385848105320672784068407907
Notes for Chap. 7 97

1134767688676890584660201791139593590722767979
8617445756819562952590259920801220117529208077
0705444809177422214784902579514964768094933848
3173060596932480677345855848701061537676603425
1254842843718829212212327337499413913712750831
0550986833980707875560051306072520155744624852
0263616216031346723897074759199703968653839368
77636080643275926566803872596099072;

a number of 726 digits! Compare

75
2. 2 /
D :9196577679054591809  10726 ;
75Š
which agrees with u.75/ to 17 significant digits [why?].

Notes for Chap. 7

Burnside’s lemma (Lemma 7.2) was actually first stated and proved by Frobenius
[40, end of Sect. 4]. Frobenius in turn credits Cauchy [18, p. 286] for proving
the lemma in the transitive case. Burnside, in the first edition of his book [14,
Sects. 118–119], attributes the lemma to Frobenius, but in the second edition [15]
this citation is absent. For more on the history of Burnside’s lemma, see [79]
and [121]. Many authors now call this result the Cauchy–Frobenius lemma. The
cycle indicator ZG .z1 ; z2 ; : : :/ (where G is a subgroup of Sn ) was first considered
by Redfield [91], who called it the group reduction function, denoted Grf.G/.
Pólya [84] independently defined the cycle indicator, proved the fundamental
Theorem 7.7, and gave numerous applications. For an English translation of Pólya’s
paper, see [85]. Much of Pólya’s work was anticipated by Redfield. For interesting
historical information about the work of Redfield and its relation to Pólya theory,
see [49,51,69,92] (all in the same issue of Journal of Graph Theory). The Wikipedia
article “John Howard Redfield” also gives information and references on the
interesting story of the rediscovery and significance of Redfield’s work.
The application of Pólya’s theorem to the enumeration of nonisomorphic graphs
appears in Pólya’s original paper [84]. For much additional work on graphical
enumeration, see the text of Harary and Palmer [50].
Subsequent to Pólya’s work there have been a huge number of expositions,
applications, and generalizations of Pólya theory. An example of such a general-
ization appears in Exercise 11. We mention here only the nice survey [25] by de
Bruijn.
98 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

Theorem 7.13 (the generating function for the cycle indicator ZS` of the
symmetric group S` ) goes back to Frobenius (see [41, bottom of p. 152 of GA])
and Hurwitz [60, Sect. 4]. It is clear that they were aware of Theorem 7.13, even if
they did not state it explicitly. For a more conceptual approach and further aspects
see Stanley [108, Sects. 5.1–5.2].

Exercises for Chap. 7

1. For a simple graph  with vertex set V , we can define an automorphism of  to

be a bijection 'W V ! V such that u and v are adjacent if and only if '.u/ and
'.v/ are adjacent. The automorphisms form a group under composition, called
the automorphism group Aut./ of . Let  be the graph shown below.
r
@
@
r @r

A
A

A
A
r

Ar r
Ar
Let G be the automorphism group of , so G has order eight.
(a) What is the cycle index polynomial of G, acting on the vertices of ?
(b) In how many ways can one color the vertices of  in n colors, up to the
symmetry of ?
2. A regular tetrahedron T has four vertices, six edges, and four triangles.
The rotational symmetries of T (no reflections allowed) form a group G of
order 12.
(a) What is the cycle index polynomial of G acting on the vertices of T ?
(b) In how many ways can the vertices of T be colored in n colors, up to
rotational symmetry?
(c) What about coloring the six edges of T , up to rotational symmetry?
3. How many necklaces (up to cyclic symmetry) have n red beads and n blue
beads? (Express your answer as a sum over all divisors d of n.)
4. (not directly related to the text) A primitive necklace is a necklace with no
symmetries, i.e., no nonidentity rotation of the necklace preserves the necklace.
Let M` .n/ denote the number of primitive n-colored necklaces with ` beads.
Show that
1X
M` .n/ D .`=d /nd ;
`
d j`

where  denotes the Möbius function from number theory. (Compare (7.7).)
Exercises for Chap. 7 99

5. Ten balls are stacked in a triangular array with 1 atop 2 atop 3 atop 4. (Think of
billiards.) The triangular array is free to rotate in two dimensions.
(a) Find the generating function for the number of inequivalent colorings using
the ten colors r1 ; r2 ; : : : ; r10 . (You don’t need to simplify your answer.)
(b) How many inequivalent colorings have four red balls, three green balls, and
three chartreuse balls? How many have four red balls, four turquoise balls,
and two aquamarine balls?
6. The dihedral group D4 of order 8 acts on the set X of 64 squares of an 8  8
chessboard B. Find the number of ways to choose two subsets S  T of X ,
up to the action of D4 . For instance, all eight ways to choose S to be a single
corner square s and T to be fs; tg, where t is adjacent to s (i.e., has an edge in
common with s), belong to the same orbit of D4 . Write your answer as a (short)
finite sum.
7. For any finite group G of permutations of an `-element set X , let f .n/ be the
number of inequivalent (under the action of G) colorings of X with n colors.
Find limn!1 f .n/=n` . Interpret your answer as saying that “most” colorings
of X are asymmetric (have no symmetries).
8. Let X be a finite set, and let G be a subgroup of the symmetric group SX .
Suppose that the number of orbits of G acting on n-colorings of X is given by
the polynomial
1
f .n/ D .n11 C 540n9 C    C 10n/:
443520
(a) What is the order (number of elements) of G?
(b) What is the size #X of X ?
(c) How many transpositions are in G? A transposition is a permutation that
transposes (interchanges) two elements of X and leaves the remaining
elements fixed.
(d) How many orbits does G have acting on X ?
(e) Show that G is not a simple group. A group G with more than one element
is simple if its only normal subgroups are G and f1g.
9. It is known that there exists a nonabelian group G of order 27 such that x 3 D 1
for all x 2 G. Use this fact to give an example of two nonisomorphic finite
subgroups G and H of SX for some finite set X such that ZG D ZH .
10. (somewhat difficult) Let NG .n/ be the polynomial of Theorem 7.5, and let
#X D d . Show that .1/d NG .n/ is equal to the number of inequivalent
n-colorings f W X ! Œn of X such that the subgroup H of G fixing f (that is,
 f D f for all 2 H ) is contained in the alternating group AX . This result
could be called a reciprocity theorem for the polynomial NG .n/.
100 7 Enumeration Under Group Action

11. (difficult) Suppose that a finite group G acts on a finite set X and another finite
group H acts on a set C of colors. Call two colorings f; gW X ! C equivalent
if there are permutations 2 G and  2 H such that

f .x/ D   g.  x/; for all x 2 X:

Thus we are allowed not only to permute the elements of X by some element
of G but also to permute the colors by some element of H . Show that the total
number of inequivalent colorings is given by
 
@ @ @
ZG ; ; ;    ZH .e z1 Cz2 Cz3 C ; e 2.z2 Cz4 Cz6 C / ; e 3.z3 Cz6 Cz9 C / ; : : :/;
@z1 @z2 @z3

evaluated at z1 D z2 D z3 D    D 0.
Example. Let n be the number of two-colored necklaces of four beads, where
we may also interchange the two colors to get an equivalent coloring. Thus
ZG D 14 .z41 C z22 C 2z4 / and ZH D 12 .z21 C z2 /. Hence
 
1 1 @4 @2 @
nD  C C 2 .e 2.z1 Cz2 Cz3 C / C e 2.z2 Cz4 Cz6 C / /jzi D0
4 2 @z41 @z22 @z4
  ˇ
1 @4 @2 @ .2z1 /4 .2z2 /2 2z4 .2z2 /4 2z4 ˇˇ
D C 2 C2 C C C C
8 @z41 @z2 @z4 4Š 2Š 1Š 4Š 1Š ˇzi D0

1
D .16 C 4 C 4 C 4 C 4/
8
D 4:

The four different necklaces are 0000, 1000, 1100, and 1010.
12. (a) Let e6 .n/ denote the number of permutations 2 Sn satisfying 6 D
 (the identity permutation). Find a simple formula for the generating
function
X xn
E6 .x/ D e6 .n/ :
n0
nŠ

(b) Generalize to ek .n/ D #f 2 Sn W k D g for any k  1.

13. Let f .n/ be the number of permutations in the symmetric group Sn all of
whose cycles have even length. For instance, f .4/ D 9 and f .11/ D 0.
(a) Let
1
X xn
F .x/ D f .n/ :
nD0
nŠ
Exercises for Chap. 7 101

Find a simple expression for F .x/. Your answer should not involve any
summation symbols (or their equivalent), logarithms, or the function e x .
(b) Use (a) to find a simple formula for f .n/.
(c) Give a combinatorial proof of (b).
14. (difficult) Give a combinatorial proof of Proposition 7.14. Despite the similarity
between Proposition 7.14 and Exercise 13, the latter is much easier to prove
combinatorially than the former.
15. Let c.w/ denote the number of cycles of a permutation w 2 Sn . Let f .n/
denote the average value of c.w/.c.w/  1/ for w 2 Sn , i.e.,
1 X
f .n/ D c.w/.c.w/  1/:
nŠ
w2Sn
P
(Set f .0/ D 1.) Find a simple formula for the generating function n0 f .n/t
n
:
16. (a) (*) Let n  1, and let G be a subgroup of Sn of odd order. Show that the
quotient poset Bn =G has the same number of elements of even rank as of
odd rank.
(b) Generalize (a) as follows: give a necessary and sufficient condition on a
subgroup G of Sn , in terms of the cycle lengths of elements of G, for
Bn =G to have the same number of elements of even rank as of odd rank.
17. Let c.`; k/ denote the number of permutations in S` with k cycles. Show that
the sequence
c.`; 1/; c.`; 2/; : : : ; c.`; `/
is strongly log-concave.
Chapter 8
A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

We defined in Chap. 6 Young’s lattice Y , the poset of all partitions of all nonnegative
integers, ordered by containment of their Young diagrams.

11111 2111 221 311 32 41 5

1111 211 22 31 4

111 21 3

11 2

Here we will be concerned with the counting of certain walks in the Hasse diagram
(considered as a graph) of Y . Note that since Y is infinite, we cannot talk about
its eigenvalues and eigenvectors. We need different techniques for counting walks.
It will be convenient to denote the length of a walk by n, rather than by ` as in
previous chapters.
Note that Y is a graded poset (of infinite rank), with Yi consisting of all partitions
of i . In other words, we have Y D Y0 [Y  1 [    (disjoint union), where every
maximal chain intersects each level Yi exactly once. We call Yi the i th level of
Y , just as we did for finite graded posets.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 103
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 8,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
104 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

Since the Hasse diagram of Y is a simple graph (no loops or multiple edges), a
walk of length n is specified by a sequence 0 ; 1 ; : : : ; n of vertices of Y . We will
call a walk in the Hasse diagram of a poset a Hasse walk. Each i is a partition
of some integer, and we have either (a) i < i C1 and ji j D ji C1 j  1 or
(b) i > i C1 and ji j D ji C1 j C 1. (Recall that for a partition , we write
jj for the sum of the parts of .) A step of type (a) is denoted by U (for “up,”
since we move up in the Hasse diagram), while a step of type (b) is denoted by
D (for “down”). If the walk W has steps of types A1 ; A2 ; : : : ; An , respectively,
where each Ai is either U or D, then we say that W is of type An An1    A2 A1 .
Note that the type of a walk is written in the opposite order to that of the walk.
This is because we will soon regard U and D as linear transformations, and
we multiply linear transformations right-to-left (opposite to the usual left-to-right
reading order). For instance (abbreviating a partition .1 ; : : : ; m / as 1    m ), the
walk ;; 1; 2; 1; 11; 111; 211; 221; 22; 21; 31; 41 is of type U UDDU U U UDU U D
U 2 D 2 U 4 DU 2 .
There is a nice combinatorial interpretation of walks of type U n which begin at
;. Such walks are of course just saturated chains ; D 0 É 1 É    É n . In other
words, they may be regarded as sequences of Young diagrams, beginning with the
empty diagram and adding one new square at each step. An example of a walk of
type U 5 is given by

:
We can specify this walk by taking the final diagram and inserting an i into square
s if s was added at the i th step. Thus the above walk is encoded by the “tableau”

1 2
3 5
4 :
Such an object  is called a standard Young tableaux (or SYT). It consists of the
Young diagram D of some partition  of an integer n, together with the numbers
1; 2; : : : ; n inserted into the squares of D, so that each number appears exactly once,
and every row and column is increasing. We call  the shape of the SYT , denoted
 D sh./. For instance, there are five SYT of shape .2; 2; 1/, given by

1 2 1 2 1 3 1 3 1 4
3 4 3 5 2 4 2 5 2 5
5 4 5 4 3 :
8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux 105

Let f  denote the number of SYT of shape , so for instance f .2;2;1/ D5.
The numbers f  have many interesting properties; for instance, there is a famous
explicit formula for them known as the Frame–Robinson–Thrall hook-length
formula. For the sake of completeness we state this formula without proof, though
it is not needed in what follows.
Let u be a square of the Young diagram of the partition . Define the hook H.u/
of u (or at u) to be the set of all squares directly to the right of u or directly below
u, including u itself. The size (number of squares) of H.u/ is called the hook length
of u (or at u), denoted h.u/. In the diagram of the partition .4; 2; 2/ below, we have
inserted the hook length h.u/ inside each square u.

6 5 2 1
3 2
2 1

8.1 Theorem (hook-length formula). Let  ` n. Then

nŠ
f D Q :
u2 h.u/

Here the notation u 2  means that u ranges over all squares of the Young diagram
of .
For instance, the diagram of the hook lengths of  D .4; 2; 2/ above gives
8Š
f .4;2;2/ D D 56:
65213221
In this chapter we will be concerned with the connection between SYT and
counting walks in Young’s lattice. If w D An An1    A1 is some word in U and D
and  ` n, then let us write ˛.w; / for the number of Hasse walks in Y of type w
which start at the empty partition ; and end at . For instance, ˛.UDU U; 11/ D 2,
the corresponding walks being ;; 1; 2; 1; 11 and ;; 1; 11; 1; 11. Thus in particular
˛.U n ; / D f  [why?]. In a similar fashion, since the number of Hasse walks of
type D n U n which begin at ;, go up to a partition  ` n, and then back down to ; is
given by .f  /2 , we have
X
˛.D n U n ; ;/ D .f  /2 : (8.1)
`n

Our object is to find an explicit formula for ˛.w; / of the form f  cw , where
cw does not depend on . (It is by no means a priori obvious that such a formula
should exist.) In particular, since f ; D 1, we will obtain by setting  D ; a simple
106 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

formula for the number of (closed) Hasse walks of type w from ; to ; (thus including
a simple formula for (8.1)).
There is an easy condition for the existence of any Hasse walk of type w from ;
to , given by the next lemma.
8.2 Lemma. Suppose w D D sk U rk    D s2 U r2 D s1 U r1 , where ri  0 and si  0.
Let  ` n. Then there exists a Hasse walk of type w from ; to  if and only if:

X
k
.ri  si / D n;
i D1

X
j
.ri  si /  0 for 1  j  k:
i D1

Proof.P Since each U moves up one level and each D moves down one level, we see
that kiD1 .ri  si / is the level at which a walk of type w beginning at ; ends. Hence
Pk
 si / D jj D n.
i D1 .ri P
j Pj
After i D1 .ri C si / steps we will be at level i D1 .ri  si /. Since the lowest
Pj
level is level 0, we must have i D1 .ri  si /  0 for 1  j  k.
The easy proof that the two conditions of the lemma are sufficient for the
existence of a Hasse walk of type w from ; to  is left to the reader. t
u

If w is a word in U and D satisfying the conditions of Lemma 8.2, then we say

that w is a valid -word. Note that the condition of being a valid -word depends
only on jj.
The proof of our formula for ˛.w; / will be based on linear transformations
analogous to those defined by (4.2) and (4.3). As in Chap. 4 let RYj be the real
vector space with basis Yj . Define two linear transformations Ui W RYi ! RYi C1
and Di W RYi ! RYi 1 by
X
Ui ./ D ;
`i C1
<
X
Di ./ D ;
`i 1
<

for all  ` i . For instance (using abbreviated notation for partitions)

U21 .54422211/ D 64422211 C 55422211 C 54432211 C 54422221 C 544222111

D21 .54422211/ D 44422211 C 54322211 C 54422111 C 5442221:

It is clear [why?] that if r is the number of distinct (i.e., unequal) parts of , then
Ui ./ is a sum of r C 1 terms and Di ./ is a sum of r terms. The next lemma is an
analogue for Y of the corresponding result for Bn (Lemma 4.6).
8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux 107

8.3 Lemma. For any i  0 we have

Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di D Ii ; (8.2)

the identity linear transformation on RYi .

Proof. Apply the left-hand side of (8.2) to a partition  of i , expand in terms of
the basis Yi , and consider the coefficient of a partition . If  ¤  and  can
be obtained from  by adding one square s to (the Young diagram of)  and then
removing a (necessarily different) square t, then there is exactly one choice of s and
t. Hence the coefficient of  in Di C1 Ui ./ is equal to 1. But then there is exactly
one way to remove a square from  and then add a square to get , namely, remove
t and add s. Hence the coefficient of  in Ui 1 Di ./ is also 1, so the coefficient of
 when the left-hand side of (8.2) is applied to  is 0.
If now  ¤  and we cannot obtain  by adding a square and then deleting a
square from  (i.e.,  and  differ in more than two rows), then clearly when we
apply the left-hand side of (8.2) to , the coefficient of  will be 0.
Finally consider the case  D . Let r be the number of distinct (unequal) parts
of . Then the coefficient of  in Di C1 Ui ./ is r C 1, while the coefficient of  in
Ui 1 Di ./ is r, since there are r C 1 ways to add a square to  and then remove it,
while there are r ways to remove a square and then add it back in. Hence when we
apply the left-hand side of (8.2) to , the coefficient of  is equal to 1.
Combining the conclusions of the three cases just considered shows that the left-
hand side of (8.2) is just Ii , as was to be proved. t
u
We come to one of the main results of this chapter.

8.4 Theorem. Let  be a partition and w D An An1    A1 a valid -word. Let

Sw D fi W Ai D Dg. For each i 2 Sw , let ai be the number of D’s in w to the right of
Ai , and let bi be the number of U ’s in w to the right of Ai . Thus bi  ai is the level
we occupy in Y before taking the step Ai D D. Then
Y
˛.w; / D f  .bi  ai /:
i 2Sw

Before proving Theorem 8.4, let us give an example. Suppose wDU 3D 2U 2DU 3 D
U U UDDU UDU U U and  D .2; 2; 1/. Then Sw D f4; 7; 8g and a4 D 0, b4 D 3,
a7 D 1, b7 D 5, a8 D 2, b8 D 5. We have also seen earlier that f 221 D 5. Thus

˛.w; / D 5.3  0/.5  1/.5  2/ D 180:

Proof. Proof of Theorem 8.4. For notational simplicity we will omit the subscripts
from the linear transformations Ui and Di . This should cause no confusion
since the subscripts will be uniquely determined by the elements on which U
and D act. For instance, the expression UDU U./ where  ` i must mean
Ui C1 Di C2 Ui C1 Ui ./; otherwise it would be undefined since Uj and Dj can only
act on elements of RYj , and moreover Uj raises the level by one while Dj lowers
it by one.
108 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

By (8.2) we can replace DU in any word y in the letters U and D by UDCI .

This replaces y by a sum of two words, one with one fewer D and the other
with one D moved one space to the right. For instance, replacing the first DU
in U UDUDDU by UD C I yields U U UDDDU C U UDDU . If we begin with
the word w and iterate this procedure, replacing a DU in any word with UD C I ,
eventually there will be no U ’s to the right of any D’s and the procedure will come
to an end. At this point we will have expressed w as a linear combination (with
integer coefficients) of words of the form U i D j . Since the operation of replacing
DU with UD C I preserves the difference between the number of U ’s and D’s in
each word, all the words U i D j which appear will have i  j equal to some constant
n (namely, the number of U ’s minus the number of D’s in w). Specifically, say we
have
X
wD rij .w/U i D j ; (8.3)
i j Dn

where each rij .w/ 2 Z. (We also define rij .w/ D 0 if i < 0 or j < 0.) We claim
that the rij .w/’s are uniquely determined by w. Equivalently [why?], if we have
X
dij U i D j D 0 (8.4)
i j Dn

(as an identity of linear transformations acting on the space RYk for any k), where
each dij 2 Z (or dij 2 R, if you prefer), then each dij D 0. Let j 0 be the least
integer for which dj 0 Cn;j 0 ¤ 0. Let  ` j 0 , and apply both sides of (8.4) to . The
left-hand side has exactly one nonzero term, namely, the term with j D j 0 [why?].
The right-hand side, on the other hand,1 is 0, a contradiction. Thus the rij .w/’s are
unique.
Now apply U on the left to (8.3). We get
X
Uw D rij .w/U i C1 D j :
i;j

Hence (using uniqueness of the rij ’s) there follows [why?]

rij .U w/ D ri 1;j .w/: (8.5)

We next want to apply D on the left to (8.3). It is easily proved by induction on

i (left as an exercise) that

DU i D U i D C i U i 1 : (8.6)

(We interpret U 1 as being 0, so that (8.6) is true for i D 0.) Hence

1
The phrase “the right-hand side, on the other hand” does not mean the left-hand side!
8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux 109

X
Dw D rij .w/DU i D j
i;j
X
D rij .w/.U i D C i U i 1 /D j ;
i;j

from which it follows [why?] that

rij .Dw/ D ri;j 1 .w/ C .i C 1/ri C1;j .w/: (8.7)

Setting j D 0 in (8.5) and (8.7) yields

ri 0 .U w/ D ri 1;0 .w/; (8.8)

ri 0 .Dw/ D .i C 1/ri C1;0 .w/: (8.9)

Now let (8.3) operate on ;. Since D j .;/ D 0 for all j > 0, we get w.;/ D
rn0 .w/U n .;/. Thus the coefficient of  in w.;/ is given by

˛.w; / D rn0 .w/˛.U n ; / D rn0 f  ;

where as usual  ` n. It is clear from (8.8) and (8.9) that

Y
rn0 .w/ D .bj  aj /;
j 2Sw

and the proof follows. t

u
NOTE. It is possible to give a simpler proof of Theorem 8.4, but the proof we have
given is useful for generalizations not appearing here.
An interesting special case of the previous theorem allows us to evaluate (8.1).
8.5 Corollary. We have
X
˛.D n U n ; ;/ D .f  /2 D nŠ:
`n

Proof. When w D D n U n in Theorem 8.4 we have Sw D fn C 1; n C 2; : : : ; 2ng,

ai D n  i C 1, and bi D n, from which the proof is immediate. t
u

NOTE (for those familiar with the representation theory of finite groups). It can
be shown that the numbers f  , for  ` n, are the degrees of the irreducible
representations of the symmetric group Sn . Given this, Corollary 8.5 is a special
case of the result that the sum of the squares of the degrees of the irreducible
representations of a finite group G is equal to the order #G of G. There are many
other intimate connections between the representation theory of Sn , on the one
hand, and the combinatorics of Young’s lattice and Young tableaux, on the other.
There is also an elegant combinatorial proof of Corollary 8.5, based on the RSK
algorithm (after Gilbert de Beauregard Robinson, Craige Schensted, and Donald
110 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

Knuth) or Robinson–Schensted correspondence, with many fascinating properties

and with deep connections to representation theory. In the first Appendix at the end
of this chapter we give a description of the RSK algorithm and the combinatorial
proof of Corollary 8.5.
We now consider a variation of Theorem 8.4 in which we are not concerned
with the type w of a Hasse walk from ; to w but only with the number of steps.
For instance, there are three Hasse walks of length three from ; to the partition 1,
given by ;; 1; ;; 1; ;; 1; 2; 1; and ;; 1; 11; 1. Let ˇ.`; / denote the number of Hasse
walks of length ` from ; to . Note the two following easy facts:
(F1) ˇ.`; / D 0 unless `  jj .mod 2/.
(F2) ˇ.`; / is the coefficient of  in the expansion of .D C U /` .;/ as a linear
combination of partitions.
Because of (F2) it is important to write .D C U /` as a linear combination of
terms U i D j , just as in the proof of Theorem 8.4 we wrote a word w in U and D in
this form. Thus define integers bij .`/ by
X
.D C U /` D bij .`/U i D j : (8.10)
i;j

Just as in the proof of Theorem 8.4, the numbers bij .`/ exist and are well defined.
8.6 Lemma. We have bij .`/ D 0 if `  i  j is odd. If `  i  j D 2m then

`Š
bij .`/ D : (8.11)
2m i Š j Š mŠ

Proof. The assertion for `i j odd is equivalent to (F1) above, so assume `i j
is even. The proof is by induction on `. It’s easy to check that (8.11) holds for ` D 1.
Now assume true for some fixed `  1. Using (8.10) we obtain
X
bij .` C 1/U i D j D .D C U /`C1
i;j
X
D .D C U / bij .`/U i D j
i;j
X
D bij .`/.DU i D j C U i C1 D j /:
i;j

In the proof of Theorem 8.4 we saw that DU i D U i D C i U i 1 (see (8.6)). Hence

we get
X X
bij .` C 1/U i D j D bij .`/.U i D j C1 C i U i 1 D j C U i C1 D j /: (8.12)
i;j i;j
8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux 111

As mentioned after (8.10), the expansion of .DCU /`C1 in terms of U i D j is unique.

Hence equating coefficients of U i D j on both sides of (8.12) yields the recurrence

bij .` C 1/ D bi;j 1 .`/ C .i C 1/bi C1;j .`/ C bi 1;j .`/: (8.13)

It is a routine matter to check that the function `Š=2mi Šj ŠmŠ satisfies the same
recurrence (8.13) as bij .`/, with the same initial condition b00 .0/ D 1. From this
the proof follows by induction. t
u
From Lemma 8.6 it is easy to prove the following result.
8.7 Theorem. Let `  n and  ` n, with `  n even. Then
!
`
ˇ.`; / D .1  3  5    .`  n  1//f  :
n

Proof. Apply both sides of (8.10) to ;. Since U i D j .;/ D 0 unless j D 0, we get

X
.D C U /` .;/ D bi 0 .`/U i .;/
i
X X
D bi 0 .`/ f  :
i `i
`
Since by Lemma 8.6 we have bi 0 .`/ D i .1  3  5    .`  i  1// when `  i is even,
the proof follows from (F2). t
u

NOTE. The proof of Theorem 8.7 only required knowing the value of bi 0 .`/.
However, in Lemma 8.6 we computed bij .`/ for all j . We could have carried out
the proof so as only to compute bi 0 .`/, but the general value of bij .`/ is so simple
that we have included it too.
8.8 Corollary. The total number of Hasse walks in Y of length 2m from ; to ; is
given by
ˇ.2m; ;/ D 1  3  5    .2m  1/:

Proof. Simply substitute  D ; (so n D 0) and ` D 2m in Theorem 8.7. t

u

The fact that we can count various kinds of Hasse walks in Y suggests that there
may be some finite graphs related to Y whose eigenvalues we can also compute.
This is indeed the case, and we will discuss the simplest case here. (See Exercise 21
for a generalization.) Let Yj 1;j denote the restriction of Young’s lattice Y to ranks
j  1 and j . Identify Yj 1;j with its Hasse diagram, regarded as a (bipartite) graph.
Let p.i / D #Yi , the number of partitions of i .
8.9 Theorem. The eigenvalues of Yj 1;j are given as follows: 0pis an eigenvalue of
multiplicity p.j /  p.j  1/; and for 1  s  j , the numbers ˙ s are eigenvalues
of multiplicity p.j  s/  p.j  s  1/.
112 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

Proof. Let A denote the adjacency matrix of Yj 1;j . Since RYj 1;j D RYj 1 ˚
RYj (vector space direct sum), any vector v 2 RYj 1;j can be written uniquely as
v D vj 1 C vj , where vi 2 RYi . The matrix A acts on the vector space RYj 1;j as
follows [why?]:
A.v/ D D.vj / C U.vj 1 /: (8.14)
Just as Theorem 4.7 followed from Lemma 4.6, we deduce from Lemma 8.3 that
for any i we have that Ui W RYi ! RYi C1 is one-to-one and Di W RYi ! RYi 1 is
onto. It follows in particular that

dim ker.Di / D dim RYi  dim RYi 1

D p.i /  p.i  1/;

where ker denotes kernel.

Case 1. Let v 2 ker.Dj /, so v D vj . Then Av D Dv D 0. Thus ker.Dj / is an
eigenspace of A for the eigenvalue 0, so 0 is an eigenvalue of multiplicity at least
p.j /  p.j  1/.
Case 2. Let v 2 ker.Ds / for some 0  s  j  1. Let
p
v D ˙ j  sU j 1s .v/ C U j s .v/:
p
Note that v 2 RYj 1;j , with vj 1 D ˙ j  sU j 1s .v/ and vj D U j s .v/.
Using (8.6), we compute

A.v / D U.vj 1 / C D.vj /

p
D ˙ j  s U j s .v/ C DU j s .v/
p
D ˙ j  s U j s .v/ C U j s D.v/ C .j  s/U j s1 .v/
p
D ˙ j  s U j s .v/ C .j  s/U j s1 .v/
p
D ˙ j  s v : (8.15)

It’s easy to verify (using the fact that U is one-to-one) that if v.1/; : : : ; v.t/
is a basis for ker.Ds /,pthen v.1/ ; : : : ; v.t/ are linearly independent. Hence by
(8.15) we have that ˙ j  s is an eigenvalue of A of multiplicity at least t D
dim ker.Ds / D p.s/  p.s  1/.
We have found a total of
j 1
X
p.j /  p.j  1/ C 2 .p.s/  p.s  1// D p.j  1/ C p.j /
sD0
p
eigenvalues
p of A. (The factor 2 above arises from the fact that both C j  s and
 j  s are eigenvalues.) Since the graph Yj 1;j has p.j  1/ C p.j / vertices,
we have found all its eigenvalues. t
u
Appendix 1: The RSK Algorithm 113

An elegant combinatorial consequence of Theorem 8.9 is the following.

8.10 Corollary. Fix j  1. The number of ways to choose a partition  of j , then
delete a square from  (keeping it a partition), then insert a square, then delete a
square, etc., for a total of m insertions and m deletions, ending back at , is given by

X
j
Œp.j  s/  p.j  s  1/s m ; m > 0: (8.16)
sD1

Proof. Exactly half the closed walks in Yj 1;j of length 2m begin at an element
of Yj [why?]. Hence if Yj 1;j has eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; r , then by Corollary 1.3
the desired number of walks is given by 12 .12m C    C r2m /. Using the values of
1 ; : : : ; r given by Theorem 8.9 yields (8.16). t
u

For instance, when j D 7, (8.16) becomes 4 C 2  2m C 2  3m C 4m C 5m C 7m .

When m D 1 we get 30, the number of edges of the graph Y6;7 [why?].

Appendix 1: The RSK Algorithm

We will describe a bijection between permutations 2 Sn and pairs .P; Q/ of

SYT of the same shape  ` n. Define a near Young tableau (NYT) to be the same
as an SYT, except that the entries can be any distinct integers, not necessarily the
integers 1; 2; : : : ; n. Let Pij denote the entry in row i and column j of P . The basic
operation of the RSK algorithm consists of the row insertion P k of a positive
integer k into an NYT P D .Pij /. The operation P k is defined as follows: let
r be the least integer such that P1r > k. If no such r exists (i.e., all elements of
the first row of P are less than k), then simply place k at the end of the first row.
The insertion process stops, and the resulting NYT is P k. If, on the other hand,
r does exist then replace P1r by k. The element k then “bumps” P1r WD k 0 into
the second row, i.e., insert k 0 into the second row of P by the insertion rule just
described. Either k 0 is inserted at the end of the second row, or else it bumps an
element k 00 to the third row. Continue until an element is inserted at the end of a row
(possibly as the first element of a new row). The resulting array is P k.
8.11 Example. Let
3 7 9 14
6 11 12
P D 10 16
13
15
Then P 8 is shown below, with the elements inserted into each row (either by
bumping or by the final insertion in the fourth row) in boldface. Thus the 8 bumps
114 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

the 9, the 9 bumps the 11, the 11 bumps the 16, and the 16 is inserted at the end of
a row. Hence
3 7 8 14
6 9 12
.P 8/ D 10 11
13 16
15
We omit the proof, which is fairly straightforward, that if P is an NYT not
containing k, then P k is an NYT. We can now describe the RSK algorithm.
Let D a1 a2    an 2 Sn . We will inductively construct a sequence .P0 ; Q0 /,
.P1 ; Q1 /, : : : ; .Pn ; Qn / of pairs .Pi ; Qi / of NYT of the same shape, where Pi and
Qi each have i squares. First, define .P0 ; Q0 / D .;; ;/. If .Pi 1 ; Qi 1 / have been
defined, then set Pi D Pi 1 ai . In other words, Pi is obtained from Pi 1 by row
inserting ai . Now define Qi to be the NYT obtained from Qi 1 by inserting i so that
Qi and Pi have the same shape. (The entries of Qi 1 don’t change; we are simply
placing i into a certain new square and not row-inserting it into Qi 1 .) Finally let
RSK
.P; Q/ D .Pn ; Qn /. We write ! .P; Q/.
8.12 Example. Let D 4273615 2 S7 . The pairs .P1 ; Q1 /; : : : , .P7 ; Q7 / D
.P; Q/ are as follows:
Pi Qi

4 1

2 1
4 2

27 13
4 2

23 13
47 24

236 135
47 24

136 135
27 24
4 6

135 135
26 24
47 67
Appendix 2: Plane Partitions 115

8.13 Theorem. The RSK algorithm defines a bijection between the symmetric group
Sn and the set of all pairs .P; Q/ of SYT of the same shape, where the shape  is a
partition of n.
Proof (sketch). The key step is to define the inverse of RSK. In other words, if
7! .P; Q/, then how can we recover uniquely from .P; Q/? Moreover, we
need to find for any .P; Q/. Observe that the position occupied by n in Q is
the last position to be occupied in the insertion process. Suppose that k occupies
this position in P . It was bumped into this position by some element j in the row
above k that is currently the largest element of its row less than k. Hence we can
“inverse bump” k into the position occupied by j , and now inverse bump j into the
row above it by the same procedure. Eventually an element will be placed in the
first row, inverse bumping another element t out of the tableau altogether. Thus t
was the last element of to be inserted, i.e., if D a1 a2    an then an D t. Now
locate the position occupied by n  1 in Q and repeat the procedure, obtaining an1 .
Continuing in this way, we uniquely construct one element at a time from right to
left, such that 7! .P; Q/. t
u

The RSK-algorithm provides a bijective proof of Corollary 8.5, that is,

X
.f  /2 D nŠ:
`n

Appendix 2: Plane Partitions

In this appendix we show how a generalization of the RSK algorithm leads to

an elegant generating function for a two-dimensional generalization of integer
partitions. A plane partition of an integer n  0 is a two-dimensional array D
. ij /i;j 1 of integers ij  0 that is weakly decreasing in rows and columns, i.e.,

ij  i C1;j ; ij  i;j C1 ;
P
such that i;j ij D n. It follows that all but finitely many ij are 0, and these 0’s
are omitted in writing a particular plane partition . Given a plane partition , we
write j j D n to denote that is a plane partition of n. More generally, if L is any
array of nonnegative integers we write jLj for the sum of the parts (entries) of L.
There is one plane partition of 0, namely, all ij D 0, denoted ;. The plane
partitions of the integers 0  n  3 are given by

; 1 2 11 1 3 21 111 11 2 1
1 1 1 1
1
116 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

If pp.n/ denotes the number of plane partitions of n, then pp.0/ D 1, pp.1/ D 1,

pp.2/ D 3, and pp.3/ D 6.
Our object is to give a formula for the generating function
X
F .x/ D pp.n/x n D 1 C x C 3x 2 C 6x 3 C 13x 4 C 24x 5 C    :
n0

More generally, we will consider plane partitions with at most r rows and at most s
columns, i.e., ij D 0 for i > r or j > s. As a simple warmup, let us first consider
the case of ordinary partitions  D .1 ; 2 ; : : : / of n.
8.14 Proposition. Let ps .n/ denote the number of partitions of n with at most s
parts. Equivalently, ps .n/ is the number of plane partitions of n with at most one
row and at most s columns [why?]. Then
X Y
s
ps .n/x n D .1  x k /1 :
n0 kD1

Proof. First note that the partition  has at most s parts if and only if the conjugate
partition 0 defined in
PChap. 6 has largest part at most s. Thus it suffices to find the
generating function n0 ps0 .n/x n , where ps0 .n/ denotes the number of partitions
of n whose largest part is at most s. Now expanding each factor .1  x k /1 as a
geometric series gives
0 1
Ys
1 Y s X
D @ x mk k A :
1  xk m 1
kD1 kD1 k

How do we get a coefficient of x n ? We must choose a term x mk k from each factor

of the product, 1  k  s, so that
X
s
nD mk k:
kD1

But such a choice is the same as choosing the partition  of n such that the part k
occurs mk times. For instance, if s D 4 and we choose m1 D 5, m2 D 0, m3 D 1,
m4 D 2, then we have chosen the partition  D .4; 4; 3; 1; 1; 1; 1; 1/ of 16. Hence
the coefficient of x n is the number of partitions  of n whose largest part is at most
s, as was to be proved. t
u

Note that Proposition 8.14 is “trivial” in the sense that it can be seen by
inspection. There is an obvious correspondence between (a) the choice of terms
contributing to the coefficient of x n and (b) partitions of n with largest part at
most r. Although the generating function we will obtain for plane partitions is
equally simple, it will be far less obvious why it is correct.
Appendix 2: Plane Partitions 117

Plane partitions have a certain similarity with SYT, so perhaps it is not surprising
that a variant of RSK will be applicable. Instead of NYT we will be dealing
with column-strict plane partitions (CSPP). These are plane partitions for which
the nonzero elements strictly decrease in each column. An example of a CSPP is
given by
7 7 4 3 3 3 1
4 3 3 1
3 2 (8.17)
2 1
1
We say that this CSPP has shape  D .7; 4; 2; 2; 1/, the shape of the Young diagram
which the numbers occupy, and that it has five rows, seven columns, and 16 parts
(so  ` 16).
If P D .Pij / is a CSPP and k  1, then we define the row insertion P k
as follows: let r be the least integer such that P1;r < k. If no such r exists (i.e.,
all elements of the first row of P are greater than or equal to k), then simply place
k at the end of the first row. The insertion process stops, and the resulting CSPP
is P k. If, on the other hand, r does exist, then replace P1r by k. The element
k then “bumps” P1r WD k 0 into the second row, i.e., insert k 0 into the second row
of P by the insertion rule just described, possibly bumping a new element k 00 into
the third row. Continue until an element is inserted at the end of a row (possibly
as the first element of a new row). The resulting array is P k. Note that this
rule is completely analogous to row insertion for NYT: for NYT an element bumps
the leftmost element greater than it, while for CSPP an element bumps the leftmost
element smaller than it.
8.15 Example. Let P be the CSPP of (8.17). Let us row insert 6 into P . The set of
elements which get bumped are shown in bold:

7 7 4 3 3 3 1
4 3 3 1
3 2
2 1
1

The final 1 that was bumped is inserted at the end of the fifth row. Thus we obtain

7 7 6 3 3 3 1
4 4 3 1
.P 6/ D 3 3
2 2
1 1
118 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

We are now ready to describe the analogue of RSK needed to count plane
partitions. Instead of beginning with a permutation 2 Sn , we begin with an r  s
matrix A D .aij / of nonnegative integers, called for short an r  s N-matrix. We
convert A into a two-line array
 
u1 u2    uN
wA D ;
v1 v2    vN
where
• u1  u2      uN .
• If i < j and ui D uj , then vi  vj .
P
• The number of columns of wA equal to i
j
is aij . (It follows that N D aij .)
It is easy to see that wA is uniquely determined by A, and conversely. As an example,
suppose that
2 3
0 1 0 2
A D 41 1 1 05: (8.18)
2 1 0 0
Then
!
3 3 3 2 2 2 1 1 1
wA D :
2 1 1 3 2 1 4 4 2
We now insert the numbers v1 ; v2 ; : : : ; vN successively into a CSPP. That is, we
start with P0 D ; and define inductively Pi D Pi 1 vi . We also start with
Q0 D ; and at the i th step insert ui into Qi 1 (without any bumping or other
altering of the elements of Qi 1 ) so that Pi and Qi have the same shape. Finally let
0
RSK
.P; Q/ D .PN ; QN / and write A ! .P; Q/.
8.16 Example. Let A be given by (8.18). The pairs .P1 ; Q1 /; : : : , .P9 ; Q9 / D
.P; Q/ are as follows:
Pi Qi

2 3

21 33

211 333

311 333
2 2

321 333
21 22
Appendix 2: Plane Partitions 119

3211 3332
21 22

4211 3332
31 22
2 1

4411 3332
32 22
21 11

4421 3332
321 221
21 11
0
RSK
It is straightforward to show that if A ! .P; Q/, then P and Q are CSPP of
the same shape. We omit the proof of the following key lemma, which is analogous
to the proof of Theorem 8.13. Let us just note a crucial property (which is easy to
0
RSK
prove) of the correspondence A ! .P; Q/ which allows us to recover A from
.P; Q/, namely, equal entries of Q are inserted from left to right. Thus the last
number placed into Q is the rightmost occurrence of the least entry. Hence we can
inverse bump the number in this position in P to back up one step in the algorithm,
RSK
just as for the usual RSK correspondence ! .P; Q/.
0
RSK
8.17 Lemma. The correspondence A ! .P; Q/ is a bijection from the set of r  s
matrices of nonnegative integers to the set of pairs .P; Q/ of CSPP of the same
shape, such that the largest part of P is at most s and the largest part of Q is at
most r.
The next step is to convert the pair .P; Q/ of CSPP of the same shape into a
single plane partition . We do this by “merging” the i th column of P with the i th
column of Q, producing the i th column of . Thus we first describe how to merge
two partitions  and  with distinct parts and with the same number of parts into
a single partition  D .; /. Draw the Ferrers diagram of  but with each row
indented one space to the right of the beginning of the previous row. Such a diagram
is called the shifted Ferrers diagram of . For instance, if  D .5; 3; 2/ then we get
the shifted diagram
120 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

Do the same for , and then transpose the diagram. For instance, if  D .6; 3; 1/
then we get the transposed shifted diagram

Now merge the two diagrams into a single diagram by identifying their main
diagonals. For  and  as above, we get the diagram (with the main diagonal drawn
for clarity):

Define .; / to be the partition for which this merged diagram is the Ferrers
diagram. The above example shows that

.532; 631/ D 544211:

The map .; / 7! .; / is clearly a bijection between pairs of partitions .; /
with k distinct parts and partitions  whose main diagonal (of the Ferrers diagram)
has k dots. Equivalently, k is the largest integer j for which j  j . Note that

jj D jj C jj  `./: (8.19)

We now extend the above bijection to pairs .P; Q/ of CSPP of the same shape.
If i denotes the i th column of P and i the i th column of Q, then let .P; Q/ be
the array whose i th column is .i ; i /. For instance, if

4421 5322
P D 3 1 1 and Q D 4 2 1
2 1

then
Appendix 2: Plane Partitions 121

4 4 2 1
4 2 2 1
.P; Q/ D 4 2
2
2
It is easy to see that .P; Q/ is a plane partition. Replace each row of .P; Q/ by
its conjugate to obtain another plane partition 0 .P; Q/. With .P; Q/ as above we
obtain
4 3 2 2
4 3 1 1
0 .P; Q/ D 2 2 1 1
1 1
1 1
Write jP j for the sum of the elements of P and write max.P / for the largest
element of P , and similarly for Q. When we merge P and Q into .P; Q/, max.P /
becomes the largest part of .P; Q/. Thus when we conjugate each row, max.P /
becomes the number col. 0 .P; Q// of columns of 0 .P; Q/ [why?]. Similarly,
max.Q/ becomes the number row. 0 .P; Q// of rows of .P; Q/ and of 0 .P; Q/.
In symbols,

max P D col. 0 .P; Q//;

max Q D row. 0 .P; Q//: (8.20)

Moreover, it follows from (8.19) that

j 0 .P; Q/j D j .P; Q/j D jP j C jQj  .P /; (8.21)

where .P / denotes the number of parts of P (or of Q).

We now have all the ingredients necessary to prove the main result of this
appendix.
8.18 Theorem. Let pprs .n/ denote the number of plane partitions of n with at most
r rows and at most s columns. Then
X Y
r Y
s
pprs .n/x n D .1  x i Cj 1 /1 :
n0 i D1 j D1

Proof. Let A D .aij / be an r s N-matrix. We can combine the bijections discussed

above to obtain a plane partition .A/ associated with A. Namely, first apply RSK
0
RSK
to obtain A ! .P; Q/, and then apply the merging process and row conjugation
to obtain .A/ D 0 .P; Q/. Since a column ji of the two-line array wA occurs aij
times and results in an insertion of j into P and i into Q, it follows that
122 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

X
jP j D jaij ;
i;j
X
jQj D i aij ;
i;j

max.P / D maxfj W aij ¤ 0g;

max.Q/ D maxfi W aij ¤ 0g:

Hence from (8.20) and (8.21), we see that the map A 7! .A/ is a bijection from
r  s N-matrices A to plane partitions with at most r rows and at most s columns.
Moreover,

j .A/j D jP j C jQj  .P /

X
D .i C j  1/aij :
i;j

Thus the enumeration of plane partitions is reduced to the much easier enumeration
of N-matrices. Specifically, we have
X X
pprs .n/x n D x j j
n0
row. /r
col. /s
X P
.i Cj 1/aij
D x
rs N-matrices A
0 1
Y
r Y
s X P
D @ x .i Cj 1/aij A

i D1 j D1 aij 0

Y
r Y
s
D .1  x i Cj 1 /1 :
i D1 j D1 t
u

Write ppr .n/ for the number of plane partitions of n with at most r rows. Letting
s ! 1 and then r ! 1 in Theorem 8.18 produces the elegant generating functions
of the next corollary.
8.19 Corollary. We have
X Y
ppr .n/x n D .1  x i / min.i;r/ ; (8.22)
n0 i 1
X Y
pp.n/x n D .1  x i /i : (8.23)
n0 i 1
Notes for Chap. 8 123

NOTE. Once one has seen the generating function

1
.1  x/.1  x 2 /.1  x 3 /   

for one-dimensional (ordinary) partitions and the generating function

1
.1  x/.1  x 2 /2 .1  x 3 /3 : : :

for two-dimensional (plane) partitions, it is quite natural to ask about higher-

dimensional partitions. In particular, a solid partition of n is a three-dimensional
array D . ij k /i;j;k1 of nonnegative integers, weakly decreasing in each of the
three coordinate directions, and with elements summing to n. Let sol.n/ denote the
number of solid partitions of n. It is easy to see that for any integer sequence a0 D 1,
a1 , a2 ; : : : , there are unique integers b1 , b2 ; : : : for which
X Y
an x n D .1  x i /bi :
n0 i 1

For the case an D sol.n/, we have

b1 D 1; b2 D 3; b3 D 6; b4 D 10; b5 D 15;

which looks quite promising. Alas, the sequence of exponents continues

20; 26; 34; 46; 68; 97; 120; 112; 23; 186; 496; 735; 531; 779; : : : :

The problem of enumerating solid partitions remains open and is considered most
likely to be hopeless.

Notes for Chap. 8

SYT were first enumerated by P.A. MacMahon [74, p. 175] (see also [75, Sect. 103]).
MacMahon formulated his result in terms of “generalized ballot sequences” or
“lattice permutations” rather than SYT, but they are easily seen to be equivalent. He
stated the result not in terms of the products of hook lengths as in Theorem 8.1, but
as a more complicated product formula. The formulation in terms of hook lengths is
due to J.S. Frame and appears first in the paper [38, Theorem 1] of Frame, Robinson,
and R.M. Thrall; hence it is sometimes called the “Frame-Robinson-Thrall hook-
length formula.” (The actual definition of SYT is due to A. Young [122, p. 258].)
Independently of MacMahon, F.G. Frobenius [41, Eq. (6)] obtained the same
formula for the degree of the irreducible character  of Sn as MacMahon obtained
for the number of lattice permutations of type . Frobenius was apparently unaware
124 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

of the combinatorial significance of deg  , but Young showed in [122, pp. 260–261]
that deg  was the number of SYT of shape , thereby giving an independent proof
of MacMahon’s result. (Young also provided his own proof of MacMahon’s result
in [122, Theorem II].)
A number of other proofs of the hook-length formula were subsequently found.
C. Greene et al. [48] gave an elegant probabilistic proof. A proof of A. Hillman
and R. Grassl [57] shows very clearly the role of hook lengths, though the proof is
not completely bijective. A bijective version was later given by C.F. Krattenthaler
[64]. Completely bijective proofs of the hook-length formula were first given by
D.S. Franzblau and D. Zeilberger [39] and by J.B. Remmel [93]. An exceptionally
elegant bijective proof was later found by J.-C. Novelli et al. [80].
The use of the operators U and D to count walks in the Hasse diagram of
Young’s lattice was developed independently, in a more general context, by S. Fomin
[36, 37] and R. Stanley [104, 106]. See also [107, Sect. 3.21] for a short exposition.
The RSK algorithm (known by a variety of other names, either “correspondence”
or “algorithm” in connection with some subset of the names Robinson, Schensted,
and Knuth) was first described, in a rather vague form, by G. de B. Robinson [94,
Sect. 5], as a tool in an attempted proof of a result now known as the “Littlewood–
Richardson Rule.” The RSK algorithm was later rediscovered by C.E. Schensted
(see below), but no one actually analyzed Robinson’s work until this was done by M.
van Leeuwen [120, Sect. 7]. It is interesting to note that Robinson says in a footnote
on page 754 that “I am indebted for this association I to Mr. D.E. Littlewood.” Van
Leeuwen’s analysis makes it clear that “association I” gives the recording tableau Q
RSK
of the RSK algorithm ! .P; Q/. Thus it might be correct to say that if 2 Sn
RSK
and ! .P; Q/, then the definition of P is due to Robinson, while the definition
of Q is due to Littlewood.
No further work related to Robinson’s construction was done until Schensted
published his seminal paper [97] in 1961. (For some information about the unusual
life of Schensted, see [5].) Schensted’s purpose was the enumeration of permu-
tations in Sn according to the length of their longest increasing and decreasing
subsequences. According to Knuth [65, p. 726], the connection between the work
of Robinson and that of Schensted was first pointed out by M.-P. Schützenberger,
though as mentioned above the first person to describe this connection precisely was
van Leeuwen.
Plane partitions were discovered by MacMahon in a series of papers which were
not appreciated until much later. (See MacMahon’s book [75, Sects. IX and X] for an
exposition of his results.) MacMahon’s first paper dealing with plane partitions was
[73]. In Article 43 of this paper he gives the definition of a plane partition (though
not yet with that name). In Article 51 he conjectures that the generating function for
plane partitions is the product

.1  x/1 .1  x 2 /2 .1  x 3 /3 .1  x 4 /4   

Exercises for Chap. 8 125

(our Eq. (8.23)). In Article 52 he conjectures our Eq. (8.22) and Theorem 8.18,
finally culminating in a conjectured generating function for plane partitions of n
with at most r rows, at most s columns, and with largest part at most t. (See
Exercise 34.) MacMahon goes on in Articles 56–62 to prove his conjecture in
the case of plane partitions with at most 2 rows and s columns (the case r D 2
of our Theorem 8.18), mentioning on page 662 that an independent solution was
obtained by A.R. Forsyth. (Though a publication reference is given to Forsyth’s
paper, apparently it never actually appeared.)
We will not attempt to describe MacMahon’s subsequent work on plane partitions,
except to say that the culmination of his work appears in [75, Art. 495], in which
he proves his main conjecture from his first paper [73] on plane partitions, viz., our
Exercise 34. MacMahon’s proof is quite lengthy and indirect.
In 1972 E.A. Bender and D.E. Knuth [6] showed the connection between
the theory of symmetric functions and the enumeration of plane partitions. They
gave simple proofs based on the RSK algorithm of many results involving plane
partitions, including the first bijective proof (the same proof that we give) of our
Theorem 8.18.
For further aspects of Young tableaux and the related topics of symmetric
functions, representation theory of the symmetric group, Grassmann varieties, etc.,
see the expositions of W.E. Fulton [42], B.E. Sagan [96], and R. Stanley [108,
Chap. 7].

Exercises for Chap. 8

1. Draw all the SYT of shape .4; 2/.

2. Using the hook-length formula, show  that the number of SYT of shape .n; n/
1 2n
is the Catalan number Cn D nC1 n .
3. How many maximal chains are in the poset L.4; 4/, where L.m; n/ is defined
in Chap. 6? Express your answer in a form involving products and quotients of
integers (no sums).
4. A corner square of a partition  is a square in the Young diagram of  whose
removal results in the Young diagram of another partition (with the same upper-
left corner). Let c./ denote the number of corner squares (or distinct parts) of
the partition . For instance, c.5; 5; 4; 2; 2; 2; 1; 1/ D 4. (The distinct parts are
5; 4; 2; 1.) Show that
X
c./ D p.0/ C p.1/ C    C p.n  1/;
`n

where p.i / denotes the number of partitions of i (with p.0/ D 1). Try to give
an elegant combinatorial proof.
126 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

5. Show that the number of odd hook lengths minus the number of even hook
lengths of a partition  is a triangular number (a number of the form k.k C
1/=2).
6. (moderately difficult)
 n Show
 that the total number of SYT with n entries and at
most two rows is bn=2c . Equivalently,

bn=2c
!
X n
f .ni;i /
D :
i D0
bn=2c

Try to give an elegant combinatorial proof.

7. (difficult) (*) Let f .n/ be the number of partitions  of 2n whose Young
diagram can be covered with n nonoverlapping dominos (i.e., two squares with
a common edge). For instance, the figure below shows a domino covering of
the partition 43221.

Let
X
F .x/ D f .n/x n D 1 C 2x C 5x 2 C 10x 3 C 20x 4 C 36x 5 C    :
n0

Show that
Y
F .x/ D .1  x n /2 :
n1

8. (difficult) Let  be a partition. Let mk ./ denote the number of parts of  that
are equal to k, and let k ./ be the number of hooks of length k of . Show
that
X X
k ./ D k mk ./:
`n `n

9. (moderately difficult) Let  be a partition, and let A be the infinite shape

consisting of the quadrant Q D f.i; j / W i < 0; j > 0g with the shape
 removed from the lower right-hand corner. Thus every square of A has a
finite hook and hence a hook length. For instance, when  D .3; 1/ we get the
diagram
Exercises for Chap. 8 127

10 9 8 6 5 3
9 8 7 5 4 2
8 7 6 4 3 1
6 5 4 2 1
3 2 1

Show that the multiset of hook lengths of A is equal to the union of the
multiset of hook lengths of Q (explicitly given by f11 ; 22 ; 33 ; : : : g) and the
multiset of hook lengths of .
10. In how many ways can we begin with the empty partition ;, then add 2n
squares one at a time (always keeping a partition), then remove n squares one
at a time, then add n squares one at a time, and finally remove 2n squares one
at a time, ending up at ;?
11. (difficult) Fix n. Show that the number of partitions  ` n for which f  is odd
is equal to 2k1 Ck2 C::: , where k1 < k2 <    and n D 2k1 C 2k2 C    (the binary
expansion of n). For instance, 75 D 20 C 21 C 23 C 26 , so the number of
partitions  of 75 for which f  is odd is 26C3C1C0 D 1024.
12. Let U and D be the linear transformationsP associated with Young’s lattice.
Write D 2 U 2 and D 3 U 3 in the form aij U i D j .
13. Let U and D be the linear transformations associated with Young’s lattice.
Suppose that f is some (noncommutative) polynomial in U p and D satisfying
f .U; D/ D 0, e.g., f .U; D/ D DU  UD  I . Let i D 1. Show that
f .iD; i U / D 0.
14. (*) Show that

U n D n D .UD  .n  1/I /.UD  .n  2/I /    .UD  I /UD; (8.24)

where U and D are the linear transformations associated with Young’s lattice
(and I is the identity transformation), and where both sides of (8.24) operate
on the vector space RYj (for some fixed j ).
15. (difficult) Give a bijective proof of Corollary 8.8, i.e., ˇ.2m; ;/ D 1  3 
5    .2m  1/. Your proof should be an analogue of the RSK algorithm. To
start with, note that [why?] 1  3  5    .2m  1/ is the number of complete
matchings of Œ2m, i.e., the number of graphs on the vertex set Œ2m with m
edges such that every vertex is incident to exactly one edge. P
16. Fix a partition  ` n  1. Find a simple formula for the sum t./ D Ê f 
in terms of f  . The sum ranges over all partitions  that cover  (i.e.,  > 
and nothing is in between, so  ` n) in Young’s lattice Y . Give a simple proof
using linear algebra rather than a combinatorial proof.
17. (a) (*) The Bell number B.n/ is defined to be the number of partitions of an
n-element set S , i.e., the number of sets fB1 ; : : : ; Bk g where Bi ¤ ;,
128 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

S
Bi \ Bj D ; if i ¤ j , and Bi D S . Find a simple formula for the
generating function
X xn x2 x3 x4
F .x/ D B.n/ D 1 C x C 2 C 5 C 15 C    :
n0
nŠ 2Š 3Š 4Š

(b) (moderately difficult) Let f .n/ be the number of ways to move from the
empty partition ; to ; in n steps, where each step consists of either (i)
adding a box to the Young diagram, (ii) removing a box, or (iii) adding and
then removing a box, always keeping the diagram of a partition (even in
the middle of a step of type (iii)). For instance, f .3/ D 5, corresponding
to the five sequences
; .1; ;/ .1; ;/ .1; ;/
; .1; ;/ 1 ;
; 1 .2; 1/ ;
; 1 .11; 1/ ;
; 1 ; .1; ;/
Find (and prove) a formula for f .n/ in terms of Bell numbers.
18. (difficult) (*) For n; k  0 let .n ! n C k ! n/ denote the number of closed
walks in Y that start at level n, go up k steps to level n C k, and then go down
k steps to level n. Thus for instance .n ! n C 1 ! n/ is the number of cover
relations between levels n and n C 1. Show that
X
.n ! n C k ! n/q n D kŠ .1  q/k F .Y; q/:
n0

Here F .Y; q/ is the rank-generating function of Y , which by Proposition 8.14

(letting s ! 1) is given by
Y
F .Y; q/ D .1  q i /1 :
i 1

19. Let X denote the formal sum of all elements of Young’s lattice Y . The
operators U and D still act in the usual way on X , producing infinite linear
combinations of elements of Y . For instance, the coefficient of the partition
.3; 1/ in DX is 3, coming from applying D to .4; 1/, .3; 2/, and .3; 1; 1/.
(a) Show that DX D .U C I /X , where as usual I denotes the identity linear
transformation.
(b) Express the coefficient sn of ; (the empty partition) in D n X in terms of the
numbers f  for  ` n. (For instance, s0 D s1 D 1; s2 D 2; s3 D 4.)
(c) Show that

D nC1 X D .UD n C D n C nD n1 /X; n  0;

where D 1 D 0, D 0 D I .
Exercises for Chap. 8 129

(d) Find a simple recurrence relation satisfied by sn .

(e) Find a simple formula for the generating function
X xn
F .x/ D sn :
n0
nŠ

(f) Show that sn is the number of involutions in Sn , i.e., the number of

elements 2 Sn satisfying 2 D .
RSK RSK
(g) (quite difficult) Show that if 2 Sn and ! .P; Q/, then 1 !
.Q; P /.
(h) Deduce (f) from (g).
20. (a) Consider the linear transformation Un1 Dn W RYn ! RYn . Show that its
eigenvalues are the integers i with multiplicity p.n  i /  p.n  i  1/, for
0  i  n  2 and i D n.
(b) (*) Use (a) to give another proof of Theorem 8.9.
21. (a) (moderately difficult) Let YŒj 2;j  denote the Hasse diagram of the restric-
tion of Young’s lattice Y to the levels j  2; j  1; j . Let p.n/ denote the
number of partitions of n, and write p.n/ D p.n/  p.n  1/. Show that
the characteristic polynomial of the adjacency matrix of the graph YŒj 2;j 
is given by

Y
j
˙x p.j / .x 2  1/p.j 1/ .x 3  .2s  1/x/p.j 1/ ;
sD2

where the sign is .1/#YŒj 2;j  D .1/p.j 2/Cp.j 1/Cp.j /.

(b) (difficult) Extend to YŒj i;j  for any i  0. Express your answer in terms
of the characteristic polynomial of matrices of the form
2 3
0 a 0 0 0
61
6 0 aC1 0 077
6 :: 7
60
6 1 0 : 0 077
6 :: 7:
6 : 7
6 7
6 :: 7
4 : 0 b5
1 0

22. (moderately difficult)

(a) Let U and D be operators (or just noncommutative variables)
P satisfying
DU  UD D 1. Show that for any power series f .U / D an U n whose
coefficients an are real numbers, we have

e Dt f .U / D f .U C t/e Dt :
130 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

In particular,
e Dt e U D e t CU e Dt : (8.25)
Here t is a variable (indeterminate) commuting with U and D. Regard
both sides as power series in t whose coefficients are (noncommutative)
polynomials in U and D. Thus for instance
0 10 1
X Dnt n X Un
e Dt e U D @ A@ A
m0
nŠ n0
nŠ
X DmU nt m
D :
m;n0
mŠ nŠ

1 2
(b) Show that e .U CD/t D e 2 t CUt
e Dt .
23. Let w be a balanced word in U and D, i.e., the same number of U ’s as
D’s. For instance, U UDUDDDU is balanced. Regard U and D as linear
transformations on RY in the usual way. A balanced word thus takes the
space RYn to itself, P
where Yn is the nth level of Young’s lattice Y . Show that
the element En D `n f  2 RYn is an eigenvector for w, and find the


eigenvalue.
24. (*) Prove that any two balanced words (as defined in the previous exercise)
commute.
25. Define a graded poset Z inductively as follows. The bottom level Z0 consists
of a single element. Assume that we have constructed the poset up to level n.
First “reflect” Zn1 through Zn . More precisely, for each element x 2 Zn1 ,
let x 0 be a new element of ZnC1 , with x 0 Ê y (where y 2 Zn ) if and only
if y Ê x. Then for each element y 2 Zn , let y 0 be a new element of ZnC1
covering y (and covering no other elements of Zn ). Figure 8.1 shows the poset
Z up to level five. The cover relations obtained by the reflection construction
are shown by solid lines, while those of the form y 0 Ê y are shown by broken
lines.
(a) Show that #Zn D FnC1 (a Fibonacci number), so the rank-generating
function of Z is given by
1
F .Z; q/ D :
1  q  q2
(b) Define Ui W RZi ! RZi C1 and Di W RZi ! RZi 1 exactly as we did for
Y , namely, for x 2 Zi we have
Exercises for Chap. 8 131

Fig. 8.1 The poset Z up to

level 5

X
Ui .x/ D y;
yÊx
X
Di .x/ D y:
yÉx

Show that Di C1 Ui  Ui 1 Di D Ii . Thus all the results we have obtained

for Y based on this commutation relation also hold for Z! (For results
involving p.n/, we need only replace p.n/ by FnC1 .)
RSK
26. (a) Suppose that 2 Sn and ! .P; Q/. Let f . / be the largest integer k
for which 1; 2; : : : ; k all appear in the first row of P . Find a simple formula
for the number of permutations 2 Sn for which f . / D k.
(b) Let E.n/ denote the expected value of f . / for 2 Sn , i.e.,
1 X
E.n/ D f . /:
nŠ
2Sn

Find limn!1 E.n/.

27. (a) An increasing subsequence of a permutation a1 a2    an 2 Sn is a
subsequence ai1 ai2    aij such that ai1 < ai2 <    < aij . For instance,
2367 is an increasing subsequence of the permutation 52386417. Suppose
that the permutation w 2 Sn is sent into an SYT of shape  D .1 ; 2 ; : : : /
under the RSK algorithm. Show that 1 is the length of the longest
increasing subsequence of w.
(b) (much harder) Define decreasing subsequence similarly to increasing
subsequence. Show that 01 (the number of parts of ) is equal to the length
of the longest decreasing subsequence of .
(c) Assuming (a) and (b), show that for m; n  1, a permutation w 2 SmnC1
has an increasing subsequence of length mC1 or a decreasing subsequence
of length n C 1.
132 8 A Glimpse of Young Tableaux

(d) How many permutations w 2 Smn have longest increasing subsequence of

length m and longest decreasing subsequence of length n? (Use the hook-
length formula to obtain a simple explicit answer.)
28. Write down the 13 plane partitions of 4 and the 24 plane partitions of 5.
0
RSK
29. Prove the statement preceding Lemma 8.17 that in the bijection A ! .P; Q/,
equal elements of Q are inserted from left to right.
30. Let A be the r  s matrix of all 1’s. Describe the plane partition 0 .A/.
31. (a) Find the N-matrix A for which

6 4 4 3 3
0
.A/ D 5 3 3 2 :
3 2 1

(b) What message is conveyed by the nonzero entries of A?

0
RSK
32. (a) (quite difficult) Let A be an r  s N-matrix, and let A ! .P; Q/. If At
0
RSK
denotes the transpose of A, then show that At ! .Q; P /.
NOTE. This result is quite difficult to prove from first principles. If you
can do Exercise 19(g), then the present exercise is a straightforward
modification. In fact, it is possible to deduce the present exercise from
Exercise 19(g).
(b) A plane partition D . ij / is symmetric if ij D j i for all i and j . Let
sr .n/ denote the number of symmetric plane partitions of n with at most r
rows. Assuming (a), show that
X Y
r
 1 Y  1
sr .n/x n D 1  x 2i 1  1  x 2.i Cj 1/ :
n0 i D1 1i <j r

(c) Let s.n/ denote the total number of symmetric plane partitions of n. Let
r ! 1 in (b) to deduce that
X Y 1
s.n/x n D :
n0 i 1
.1  x 2i 1 /.1  x 2i /bi=2c

(d) (very difficult; cannot be done using RSK) Let srt .n/ denote the number of
symmetric plane partitions of n with at most r rows and with largest part
at most t. Show that
X Y Yt
1  x .2ıij /.i Cj Ck1/
srt .n/x n D :
n0 1i <j r kD1
1  x .2ıij /.i Cj Ck2/
P
33. The trace of a plane partition D . ij / is defined as tr. / D i i i . Let
pp.n; k/ denote the number of plane partitions of n with trace k. Show that
Exercises for Chap. 8 133

XX Y
pp.n; k/q k x n D .1  qx i /i :
n0 k0 i 1

34. (very difficult; cannot be done using RSK) Let pprst .n/ be the number of plane
partitions of n with at most r rows, at most s columns, and with largest part at
most t. Show that
X Y r Y s Yt
1  x i Cj Ck1
pprst .n/x n D :
n0 i D1 j D1
1  x i Cj Ck2
kD1

35. Let f .n/ denote the number of solid partitions

P of n with largest part at most 1.
Find the generating function F .x/ D n0 f .n/x n .
Chapter 9
The Matrix-Tree Theorem

The Matrix-Tree Theorem is a formula for the number of spanning trees of a graph
in terms of the determinant of a certain matrix. We begin with the necessary graph-
theoretical background. Let G be a finite graph, allowing multiple edges but not
loops. (Loops could be allowed, but they turn out to be completely irrelevant.)
We say that G is connected if there exists a walk between any two vertices of G.
A cycle is a closed walk with no repeated vertices or edges, except for the first and
last vertex. A tree is a connected graph with no cycles. In particular, a tree cannot
have multiple edges, since a double edge is equivalent to a cycle of length two. The
three nonisomorphic trees with five vertices are shown in Fig. 9.1.
A basic theorem of graph theory (whose easy proof we leave as an exercise) is
the following.
9.1 Proposition. Let G be a graph with p vertices. The following conditions are
equivalent:
(a) G is a tree.
(b) G is connected and has p  1 edges.
(c) G has no cycles and has p  1 edges.
(d) There is a unique path (= walk with no repeated vertices) between any two
vertices.
A spanning subgraph of a graph G is a graph H with the same vertex set as G,
and such that every edge of H is an edge of G. If G has q edges, then the number
of spanning subgraphs of G is equal to 2q , since we can choose any subset of the
edges of G to be the set of edges of H . (Note that multiple edges between the same
two vertices are regarded as distinguishable, in accordance with the definition of a
graph in Chap. 1.) A spanning subgraph which is a tree is called a spanning tree.
Clearly G has a spanning tree if and only if it is connected [why?]. An important
invariant of a graph G is its number of spanning trees, called the complexity of G
and denoted .G/.
9.2 Example. Let G be the graph illustrated below, with edges a, b, c, d , and e.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 135
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 9,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
136 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

Fig. 9.1 The three trees with five vertices

a e c

Then G has eight spanning trees, namely, abc, abd , acd , bcd , abe, ace, bde, and
cde (where, e.g., abc denotes the spanning subgraph with edge set fa; b; cg).
9.3 Example. Let G D K5 , the complete graph on five vertices. A simple counting
argument shows that K5 has 60 spanning trees isomorphic to the first tree in Fig. 9.1,
60 isomorphic to the second tree, and 5 isomorphic to the third tree. Hence .K5 / D
125. It is even easier to verify that .K1 / D 1, .K2 / D 1, .K3 / D 3, and
.K4 / D 16. Can the reader make a conjecture about the value of .Kp / for any
p  1?
Our object is to obtain a “determinantal formula” for .G/. For this we need
an important result from matrix theory, known as the Binet–Cauchy theorem or
Cauchy–Binet theorem and which is often omitted from a beginning linear algebra
course. Later (Theorem 10.4) we will prove a more general determinantal formula
without the use of the Binet–Cauchy theorem. However, the use of the Binet–
Cauchy theorem does afford some additional algebraic insight. The Binet–Cauchy
theorem is a generalization of the familiar fact that if A and B are n  n matrices,
then det AB D .det A/.det B/, where det denotes determinant. We want to extend
this formula to the case where A and B are rectangular matrices whose product is a
square matrix (so that det AB is defined). In other words, A will be an m  n matrix
and B an n  m matrix, for some m; n  1.
We will use the following notation involving submatrices. Suppose A D .aij / is
an m  n matrix, with 1  i  m, 1  j  n, and m  n. Given an m-element
subset S of f1; 2; : : : ; ng, let AŒS  denote the m  m submatrix of A obtained by
taking the columns indexed by the elements of S . In other words, if the elements of
S are given by j1 < j2 <    < jm , then AŒS  D .ai;jk /, where 1  i  m and
1  k  m. For instance, if
2 3
1 2 3 4 5
AD 4 6 7 8 9 10 5
11 12 13 14 15
9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem 137

and S D f2; 3; 5g, then

2 3
2 3 5
AŒS  D 4 7 8 10 5 :
12 13 15

Similarly, let B D .bij / be an n  m matrix with 1  i  n, 1  j  m,

and m  n. Let S be an m-element subset of f1; 2; : : : ; ng as above. Then BŒS 
denotes the m  m matrix obtained by taking the rows of B indexed by S . Note that
At ŒS  D AŒS t , where t denotes transpose.
9.4 Theorem (the Binet–Cauchy Theorem). Let A D .aij / be an m n matrix, with
1  i  m and 1  j  n. Let B D .bij / be an n  m matrix with 1  i  n and
1  j  m. (Thus AB is an m  m matrix.) If m > n, then det.AB/ D 0. If m  n,
then
X
det.AB/ D .det AŒS /.det BŒS /;
S

where S ranges over all m-element subsets of f1; 2; : : : ; ng.

Before proceeding to the proof, let us give an example. We write jaij j for the
determinant of the matrix .aij /. Suppose
2 3

c1 d1
a1 a2 a3
AD ; B D 4 c2 d2 5 :
b1 b2 b3
c3 d3

Then
ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ
ˇ a1 a2 ˇ ˇ c1 d1 ˇ ˇ a1 a3 ˇ ˇ c1 d1 ˇ ˇ a2 a3 ˇ ˇ c2 d2 ˇ
ˇ
det AB D ˇ ˇ  ˇ ˇ C ˇ ˇ  ˇ ˇ C ˇ ˇ  ˇ ˇ:
b1 b2 ˇ ˇ c2 d2 ˇ ˇ b1 b3 ˇ ˇ c3 d3 ˇ ˇ b2 b3 ˇ ˇ c3 d3 ˇ
Proof of Theorem 9.4 (sketch). First suppose m > n. Since from linear algebra we
know that rank AB  rank A and that the rank of an m  n matrix cannot exceed n
(or m), we have that rank AB  n < m. But AB is an mm matrix, so det AB D 0,
as claimed.
Now assume m  n. We use notation such as Mrs to denote an r  s matrix M .
It is an immediate consequence of the definition of matrix multiplication (which the
reader should check) that

Rmm Smn Vmn Wmm RV C SX RW C S Y

D : (9.1)
Tnm Unn Xnn Ynm T V C UX T W C U Y

In other words, we can multiply “block” matrices of suitable dimensions as if their

entries were numbers. Note that the entries of the right-hand side of (9.1) all have
well-defined dimensions (sizes), e.g., RV C SX is an m  n matrix since both RV
and SX are m  n matrices.
138 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

Now in (9.1) let R D Im (the m  m identity matrix), S D A, T D Onm (the

n  m matrix of 0’s), U D In , V D A, W D Omm , X D In , and Y D B. We get

Im A A Omm Omn AB
D : (9.2)
Onm In In B In B

Take the determinant of both sides of (9.2). The first matrix on the left-hand side is
upper triangular with 1’s on the main diagonal. Hence its determinant is one. Since
the determinant of a product of square matrices is the product of the determinants
of the factors, we get
ˇ ˇ ˇ ˇ
ˇ A Omm ˇ ˇ Omn AB ˇ
ˇ ˇDˇ ˇ
ˇ In B ˇ ˇ In B ˇ : (9.3)

It is easy to see [why?] that the determinant on the right-hand side of (9.3) is
equal to ˙ det AB. So consider the left-hand side. A nonzero term in the expansion
of the determinant on the left-hand side is obtained by taking the product (with a
certain sign) of m C n nonzero entries, no two in the same row and column (so one
in each row and each column). In particular, we must choose m entries from the
last m columns. These entries belong to m of the bottom n rows [why?], say rows
m C s1 ; m C s2 ; : : : ; m C sm . Let S D fs1 ; s2 ; : : : ; sm g  f1; 2; : : : ; ng. We must
choose n  m further entries from the last n rows, and we have no choice but to
choose the 1’s in those rows m C i for which i 62 S . Thus every term in the
expansion of the left-hand side of (9.3) uses exactly n  m of the 1’s in the bottom
left block In .
What is the contribution to the expansion of the left-hand side of (9.3) from those
terms which use exactly the 1’s from rows m C i where i 62 S ? We obtain this
contribution by deleting all rows and columns to which these 1’s belong (in other
words, delete row m C i and column i whenever i 2 f1; 2; : : : ; ng  S ), taking
the determinant of the 2m  2m matrix MS that remains and multiplying by an
appropriate sign [why?]. But the matrix MS is in block-diagonal form, with the
first block just the matrix AŒS  and the second block just BŒS . Hence det MS D
.det AŒS /.det BŒS / [why?]. Taking all possible subsets S gives
X
det AB D ˙.det AŒS /.det BŒS /:
S f1;2;:::;ng
jS jDm

It is straightforward but somewhat tedious to verify that all the signs are C; we omit
the details. This completes the proof. 
In Chap. 1 we defined the adjacency matrix A.G/ of a graph G with vertex
set V D fv1 ; : : : ; vp g and edge set E D fe1 ; : : : ; eq g. We now define two related
matrices. Continue to assume that G has no loops. (This assumption is harmless
since loops have no effect on .G/.)
9.5 Definition. Let G be as above. Give G an orientation o, i.e, for every edge e
with vertices u; v, choose one of the ordered pairs .u; v/ or .v; u/. If we choose .u; v/,
9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem 139

Fig. 9.2 A graph G with an e

orientation o
1 4

f
a b d

2 c 3

say, then we think of putting an arrow on e pointing from u to v; and we say that e
is directed from u to v, that u is the initial vertex and v the final vertex of e, etc.
(a) The incidence matrix M .G/ of G (with respect to the orientation o) is the p  q
matrix whose .i; j /-entry M ij is given by
8
< 1; if the edge ej has initial vertex vi ,
M ij D 1; if the edge ej has final vertex vi ,
:
0; otherwise.

(b) The laplacian matrix L.G/ of G is the p  p matrix whose .i; j /-entry Lij is
given by
(
mij ; if i ¤ j and there are mij edges between vi and vj ,
Lij D
deg.vi /; if i D j ,

where deg.vi / is the number of edges incident to vi . Note that L.G/ is

symmetric and does not depend on the orientation o.
As an example, let .G; o/ be the oriented graph of Fig. 9.2. Then
2 3
1 1 0 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 0 0 0 7
M .G/ D 6 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 5;
7

0 0 0 0 1 1

2 3
5 2 1 2
6 2 3 1 0 7
L.G/ D 6
4 1 1 2 0 5:
7

2 0 0 2
For any graph G, every column of M .G/ contains one 1, one 1, and q  2
0’s; and hence the sum of the entries in each column is 0. Thus all the rows sum
to the 0 vector, a linear dependence relation which shows that rank .M .G// < p.
Two further properties of M .G/ and L.G/ are given by the following lemma.
140 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

9.6 Lemma. (a) We have M M t D L.

(b) If G is regular of degree d , then L.G/ D dI  A.G/, where A.G/ denotes the
adjacency matrix of G. Hence if G (or A.G/) has eigenvalues 1 ; : : : ; p , then
L.G/ has eigenvalues d  1 ; : : : ; d  p .

Proof. (a) This is immediate from the definition of matrix multiplication.

Specifically, for vi ; vj 2 V .G/ we have
X
.M M t /ij D Mi k Mj k :
ek 2E.G/

If i ¤ j , then in order for M i k M j k ¤ 0, we must have that the edge ek

connects the vertices vi and vj . If this is the case, then one of M i k and M j k will
be 1 and the other 1 [why?], so their product is always 1. Hence .M M t /ij D
mij , as claimed.
There remains the case i D j . Then Mi k Mi k will be 1 if ek is an edge
with vi as one of its vertices and will be 0 otherwise [why?]. So now we get
.M M t /i i D deg.vi /, as claimed. This proves (a).
(b) Clear by (a), since the diagonal elements of M M t are all equal to d . t
u

Now assume that G is connected, and let M0 .G/ be M .G/ with its last row
removed. Thus M 0 .G/ has p  1 rows and q columns. Note that the number of
rows is equal to the number of edges in a spanning tree of G. We call M 0 .G/ the
reduced incidence matrix of G. The next result tells us the determinants (up to sign)
of all .p  1/  .p  1/ submatrices N of M 0 . Such submatrices are obtained by
choosing a set X D fei1 ; : : : ; eip1 g of p  1 edges of G and taking all columns
of M 0 indexed by the set S D fi1 ; : : : ; ip1 g. Thus this submatrix is just M 0 ŒS .
For convenience we will not bother to distinguish between the set S of indices with
the corresponding set X of edges.
9.7 Lemma. Let S be a set of p 1 edges of G. If S does not form the set of edges of
a spanning tree, then det M 0 ŒS  D 0. If, on the other hand, S is the set of edges of
a spanning tree of G, then det M 0 ŒS  D ˙1.

Proof. If S is not the set of edges of a spanning tree, then some subset R of S
forms the edges of a cycle C in G. Suppose that the cycle C defined by R has edges
f1 ; : : : ; fs in that order. Multiply the column of M 0 ŒS  indexed by fj by 1 if in
going around C we traverse fi in the direction of its arrow; otherwise multiply the
column by 1. Then add these modified columns. It is easy to see (check a few
small examples to convince yourself) that we get the 0 column. Hence the columns
of M 0 ŒS  are linearly dependent, so det M 0 ŒS  D 0, as claimed.
Now suppose that S is the set of edges of a spanning tree T . Let e be an edge
of T which is connected to vp (the vertex which indexed the bottom row of M ,
i.e., the row removed to get M 0 ). The column of M 0 ŒS  indexed by e contains
exactly one nonzero entry [why?], which is ˙1. Remove from M 0 ŒS  the row and
9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem 141

column containing the nonzero entry of column e, obtaining a .p  2/  .p  2/

matrix M 00 . Note that det M 0 ŒS  D ˙ det M 00 [why?]. Let T 0 be the tree obtained
from T by contracting the edge e to a single vertex (so that vp and the remaining
vertex of e are merged into a single vertex u). Then M 00 is just the matrix obtained
from the incidence matrix M .T 0 / by removing the row indexed by u [why?]. Hence
by induction on the number p of vertices (the case p D 1 being trivial), we have
det M 00 D ˙1. Thus det M 0 ŒS  D ˙1, and the proof follows. t
u

NOTE. An alternative way of seeing that det M 0 ŒS  D ˙1 when S is the set of

edges of a spanning tree T is as follows. Let u1 ; u2 ; : : : ; up1 be an ordering of the
vertices v1 ; : : : ; vp1 such that ui is an endpoint of the tree obtained from T by
removing vertices u1 ; : : : ; ui 1 . (It is easy to see that such an ordering is possible.)
Permute the rows of M 0 ŒS  so that the i th row is indexed by ui . Then permute the
columns in the order e1 ; : : : ; ep1 so that ei is the unique edge adjacent to ui after
u1 ; : : : ; ui 1 have been removed. Then we obtain a lower triangular matrix with
˙1’s on the main diagonal, so the determinant is ˙1.
We have now assembled all the ingredients for the main result of this chapter.
Recall that .G/ denotes the number of spanning trees of G.
9.8 Theorem (the Matrix-Tree Theorem). Let G be a finite connected graph without
loops, with laplacian matrix L D L.G/. Let L0 denote L with the last row and
column removed (or with the i th row and column removed for any i ). Then

det L0 D .G/:

Proof. Since L D M M t (Lemma 9.6(a)), it follows immediately that L0 D

M 0 M t0 . Hence by the Binet–Cauchy theorem (Theorem 9.4), we have
X
det L0 D .det M 0 ŒS /.det M t0 ŒS /; (9.4)
S

where S ranges over all .p  1/-element subsets of f1; 2; : : : ; qg (or equivalently,

over all .p  1/-element subsets of the set of edges of G). Since in general At ŒS  D
AŒS t , (9.4) becomes
X
det L0 D .det M 0 ŒS /2 : (9.5)
S

According to Lemma 9.7, det M 0 ŒS  is ˙1 if S forms the set of edges of a spanning

tree of G and is 0 otherwise. Therefore the term indexed by S in the sum on the
right-hand side of (9.5) is 1 if S forms the set of edges of a spanning tree of G and
is 0 otherwise. Hence the sum is equal to .G/, as desired. t
u

The operation of removing a row and column from L.G/ may seem somewhat
contrived. We would prefer a description of .G/ directly in terms of L.G/. Such a
description will follow from the next lemma.
142 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

9.9 Lemma. Let M be a p  p matrix (with entries in a field) such that the sum
of the entries in every row and column is 0. Let M0 be the matrix obtained from
M by removing the last row and last column (or more generally, any row and any
column). Then the coefficient of x in the characteristic polynomial det.M  xI / of
M is equal to p  det.M0 /. (Moreover, the constant term of det.M  xI / is 0.)

Proof. The constant term of det.M  xI / is det M , which is 0 since the rows of M
sum to 0.
For simplicity we prove the rest of the lemma only for removing the last row
and column, though the proof works just as well for any row and column. Add all
the rows of M  xI except the last row to the last row. This doesn’t affect the
determinant and will change the entries of the last row all to x (since the rows of
M sum to 0). Factor out x from the last row, yielding a matrix N.x/ satisfying
det.M  xI / D x det N.x/. Hence the coefficient of x in det.M  xI / is given
by  det N.0/. Now add all the columns of N.0/ except the last column to the last
column. This does not affect det N.0/. Because the columns of M sum to 0, the
last column of N.0/ becomes the column vector Œ0; 0; : : : ; 0; pt . Expanding the
determinant by the last column shows that det N.0/ D p  det M0 , and the proof
follows. t
u

9.10 Corollary. (a) Let G be a connected (loopless) graph with p vertices.

Suppose that the eigenvalues of L.G/ are 1 ; : : : ; p1 ; p , with p D 0.
Then
1
.G/ D 1 2    p1 :
p
(b) Suppose that G is also regular of degree d and that the eigenvalues of A.G/
are 1 ; : : : ; p1 ; p , with p D d . Then
1
.G/ D .d  1 /.d  2 /    .d  p1 /:
p

Proof. (a) We have

det.L  xI / D .1  x/    .p1  x/.p  x/

D .1  x/.2  x/    .p1  x/x:

Hence the coefficient of x is 1 2    p1 . By Lemma 9.9, we get

1 2    p1 D p  det.L0 /. By Theorem 9.8 we have det.L0 / D .G/,
and the proof follows.
(b) Immediate from (a) and Lemma 9.6(b). t
u

Let us look at a couple of examples of the use of the Matrix-Tree Theorem.

9.11 Example. Let G D Kp , the complete graph on p vertices. Now Kp is regular
of degree d D p  1, and by Proposition 1.5 its eigenvalues are 1 (p  1 times)
and p  1 D d . Hence from Corollary 9.10 there follows
Appendix: Three Elegant Combinatorial Proofs 143

1
.Kp / D ..p  1/  .1//p1 D p p2 :
p
Naturally a combinatorial proof of such an elegant result is desirable. In the
Appendix to this chapter we give three such proofs.
9.12 Example. Let G D Cn , the n-cube discussed in Chap. 2. Now Cn is regular
  of
degree n, and by Corollary 2.4 its eigenvalues are n  2i with multiplicity ni for
0  i  n. Hence from Corollary 9.10 there follows the amazing result

1 Y
n
n
.Cn / D .2i /. i /
2n i D1

Y
n
n
i .i / :
n n1
D 22
i D1

A direct combinatorial proof (though not an explicit bijection) was found by

Bernardi in 2012.

Appendix: Three Elegant Combinatorial Proofs

In this appendix we give three elegant combinatorial proofs that the number of
spanning trees of the complete graph Kp is p p2 (Example 9.11). The proofs are
given in chronological order of their discovery.
First proof (Prüfer). Given a spanning tree T of Kp , i.e., a tree on the vertex set
Œp, remove the largest endpoint (leaf) v and write down the vertex a1 adjacent to
v. Continue this procedure until only two vertices remain, obtaining a sequence
.a1 ; : : : ; ap2 / 2 Œpp2 , called the Prüfer sequence of T . For the tree below, we
first remove 11 and then record 8. Next remove 10 and record 1. Then remove 8 and
record 4, etc., ending with the sequence .8; 1; 4; 4; 1; 4; 9; 1; 9/ and leaving the two
vertices 1 and 9.

8 6
11
5 10
4 9 1

7 2 3
144 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

We claim that the map just defined from trees T on Œp to sequences .a1 ; : : :;
ap2 / 2 Œpp2 is a bijection, thereby completing the proof since clearly Œpp2 has
p p2 elements. The crucial observation is that the first vertex to be removed from
T is the largest vertex of T missing from the sequence [why?—this takes a little
thought]. This vertex is adjacent to a1 . For our example, we get that 11 was the
first vertex removed and that 11 is adjacent to 8. We can now proceed recursively.
If T1 denotes T with the largest missing vertex removed, then the Prüfer sequence
of T1 is .a2 ; : : : ; ap2 /. The first vertex to be removed from T1 is the largest vertex
of T2 missing from .a2 ; : : : ; ap2 /. This missing vertex is adjacent to a2 . For our
example, this missing vertex is 10 (since 11 is not a vertex of T2 ), which is adjacent
to 1. Continuing in this way, we determine one new edge of T at each step. At the
end we have found p  2 edges, and the remaining two unremoved vertices form the
.p  1/st edge.
Second proof (Joyal). A doubly rooted tree is a tree T with one vertex u labelled S
(for “start”) and one vertex v (which may equal u) labelled E (“end”). Let t.p/ be
the number of trees T on the vertex set Œp, and let d.p/ be the number of doubly
rooted trees on Œp. Thus
d.p/ D p 2 t.p/; (9.6)
since once we have chosen T there are p choices for u and p choices for v.
Let T be a doubly rooted tree. There is a unique path from S to E, say with
vertices S D b1 ; b2 ; : : : ; bk D E (in that order). The following diagram shows such
a doubly rooted tree:

11 10 15 7 5 2 3
S E

1 16
6 9 4 12 17

14 13 8

Let a1 < a2 <    < ak be the increasing rearrangement of the numbers

b1 ; b2 ; : : : ; bk . Let be the permutation of the set fa1 ; : : : ; ak g given by .ai / D bi .
Let D be the digraph of , that is, the vertex set of D is fa1 ; : : : ; ak g, with a
directed edge ai ! bi for 1  i  k. Since any permutation of a finite set
is a disjoint product of cycles, it follows that D is a disjoint union of directed
cycles (all edges of each cycle point in the same direction as we traverse the cycle).
For the example above, we have k D 7, .b1 ; : : : ; b7 / D .11; 10; 15; 7; 5; 2; 3/, and
.a1 ; : : : ; a7 / D .2; 3; 5; 7; 10; 11; 15/. The digraph D is shown below.
Appendix: Three Elegant Combinatorial Proofs 145

2 3 10

7
11 15 5

Now attach to each vertex v of D the same subgraph Tv that was attached
“below” v in T and direct the edges of Tv toward v, obtaining a digraph DT . For
our example we get

4 12 17

3 10
2

7
11 15 5

1 9 16
6

14 13 8

The graph DT has the crucial property that every vertex has outdegree one, that
is, one arrow pointing out. In other words, DT is the graph of a function f W Œp !
Œp, with vertex set Œp and edges i ! f .i /. Conversely, given a function f W Œp !
Œp, all the above steps can be reversed to obtain a unique doubly rooted tree T for
which DT is the graph of f . We have therefore found a bijection from doubly rooted
trees on Œp to functions f W Œp ! Œp. Since the number of such functions f is p p ,
it follows that d.p/ D p p . Then from (9.6) we get t.p/ D p p2 .
Third proof (Pitman). A forest is a graph without cycles; thus every connected
component is a tree. A planted forest is a forest F for which every component T
has a distinguished vertex rT (called the root of T ). Thus if a component T has k
vertices, then there are k ways to choose the root of T .
Let Pp be the set of all planted forests on Œp. Let uv be an edge of a forest
F 2 Pp such that u is closer than v to the root r of its component. Define F to cover
the rooted forest F 0 if F 0 is obtained by removing the edge uv from F and rooting
the new tree containing v at v. This definition of cover defines the covering relation
of a partial order on Pp . Under this partial order Pp is graded of rank p 1. The rank
of a forest F in Pp is its number of edges. The following diagram shows the poset
P3 , with the root of each tree being its top vertex.
146 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

1 2 3

2 3 1 3 1 2

1 1 2 2 3 3

3 3 2 3 1 2 1
2 1 3 1 2

1 2 3

It is an easy exercise to see that an element F of Pp of rank i covers i elements

and is covered by .p  i  1/p elements. We now count in two ways the number Mp
of maximal chains of Pp . On the one hand, we can start at the top. The number of
maximal elements of Pp is p  t.p/, where t.p/ as above is the number of trees on
the vertex set Œp, since there are p ways to choose the root of such a tree. Once a
maximal element F is chosen, then there are p  1 elements F 0 that it covers, then
p  2 elements that F 0 covers, etc., giving

Mp D p  t.p/.p  1/Š D pŠ t.p/: (9.7)

On the other hand, we can start at the bottom. There is a unique element F of rank
one (the planted forest with no edges), then .p  1/p elements F 0 that cover F , then
.p  2/p elements that cover F 0 , etc., giving

Mp D p p1 .p  1/Š: (9.8)

Comparing (9.7) and (9.8) gives t.p/ D p p2 .

Our third proof isn’t an explicit bijection like the first two proofs. On the other
hand, it has the virtue of not depending on the names of the vertices. Note that in
the first two proofs it is necessary to know when one vertex is larger than another.

Notes for Chap. 9

The concept of tree as a formal mathematical object goes back to Kirchhoff and
von Staudt. Trees were first extensively investigated by Cayley, to whom the term
“tree” is due. In particular, in [20] Cayley states the formula .Kp / D p p2 for the
Exercises for Chap. 9 147

number of spanning trees of Kp and he gives a vague idea of a combinatorial proof.

Because of this paper, Cayley is often credited with the enumeration of labelled
trees. Cayley pointed out, however, that an equivalent result had been proved earlier
by Borchardt [10]. Moreover, this result appeared even earlier in a paper of Sylvester
[111]. Undoubtedly Cayley and Sylvester could have furnished a complete, rigorous
proof had they had the inclination to do so. The elegant combinatorial proofs given
in the appendix are due to Prüfer [89], Joyal [61, Example 12, pp. 15–16], and
Pitman [83].
The Matrix-Tree Theorem (Theorem 9.8) was first proved by Borchardt [10]
in 1860, though a similar result had earlier been published by Sylvester [111] in
1857. Cayley [19, p. 279] in fact in 1856 referred to the not-yet-published work of
Sylvester. For further historical information on the Matrix-Tree theorem, see Moon
[77, p. 42].

Exercises for Chap. 9

1. (*) Let Gp be the complete graph Kp with one edge removed. How many
spanning trees does Gp have?
2. Let L D L.Krs / be the laplacian matrix of the complete bipartite graph Krs .
(a) Find a simple upper bound on rank.L  rI /. Deduce a lower bound on the
number of eigenvalues of L equal to r.
(b) Assume r ¤ s and do the same as (a) for s instead of r.
(c) (*) Find the remaining eigenvalues of L.
(d) Use (a)–(c) to compute .Krs /, the number of spanning trees of Krs .
(e) Give a combinatorial proof of the formula for .Krs /, by modifying either
the proof of Prüfer or Joyal that .Kp / D p p2 .
3. Let p  5 and let Gp be the graph on the vertex set Zp with edges fi; i C1g and
fi; i C 2g, for i 2 Zp . Thus Gp has 2p edges. Show that .Gp / D pFp2 , where
Fp is a Fibonacci number (F1 D F2 D 1, Fp D Fp1 C Fp2 for p  3).
4. Let C n be the edge complement of the cube graph Cn , i.e., C n has vertex set
f0; 1gn, with an edge uv if u and v differ in at least two coordinates. Find a
formula for .C n /, the number of spanning trees of C n . Your answer should be
expressed as a simple product.
5. (a) (based on a suggestion of Venkataramana) Let G be a bipartite graph with
vertex bipartition .A; B/. Suppose that deg v D a for all v 2 A and deg v D
b for all v 2 B. Let A and L denote the adjacency matrix and laplacian
matrix of G, respectively. Show that if the eigenvalues of L are 1 ; : : : ; p ,
then the eigenvalues of A 2 are .1  a/.1  b/; : : : ; .p  a/.p  b/.
(b) (*) Find the number of spanning trees of the graph Cn;k of Exercise 2 in
Chap. 2.
148 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

6. (a) (*) Let G be a finite loopless graph with p vertices. Suppose that the
eigenvalues of the Laplacian matrix L.G/ are 1 ; : : : ; p1 and p D 0. Let
J be the p  p matrix of all 1’s and let ˛ 2 R. Show that the eigenvalues
of L C ˛J are 1 ; : : : ; p1 ; ˛p.
(b) Let G [Kp be the graph obtained from G by adding one new edge between
every pair of distinct vertices. Express the number of spanning trees of
G [ Kp in terms of 1 ; : : : ; p1 .
(c) Suppose that G is simple and let G be the complementary graph, i.e., G
and G have the same vertex set, and two distinct vertices are adjacent in G
if and only if they are not adjacent in G. Express the number of spanning
trees of G in terms of 1 ; : : : ; p1 .
(d) (*) Let G be simple with p vertices and define the polynomial
X
P .G; x/ D x c.F /1 ;
F

where F ranges over all spanning planted forests of G and where c.F / is
the number of components of F . Show that

P .G; x/ D .1/p1 P .G; x  p/:

7. (*) Let V be the subset of Z  Z on or inside some simple closed polygonal

curve whose vertices belong to Z  Z, such that every line segment that makes
up the curve is parallel to either the x-axis or y-axis. Draw an edge e between
any two points of V at distance one apart, provided e lies on or inside the
boundary curve. We obtain a planar graph G, an example being
r r r r r

r r r r r

r r r r r r

r r r r r

r r r
Let G 0 be the dual graph G  with the “outside” vertex deleted. (The vertices
of G 0 are the interior regions of G. For each edge e of G, say with regions
R and R0 on the two sides of e, there is an edge of G 0 between R and R0 .
See Sect. 11.4 for more information on duals to planar graphs.) For the above
example, G 0 is given by
Exercises for Chap. 9 149

r r r r

r r r

r r r r

r r
Let 1 ; : : : ; p denote the eigenvalues of G 0 (i.e., of the adjacency matrix
A.G 0 /). Show that
Y
p
.G/ D .4  i /:
i D1

8. (a) Let L be the laplacian matrix of a graph G on p vertices. We know (via

Corollary 9.10) that the coefficient of x in the characteristic polynomial
det.L  xI / is p.G/. Show in fact that the coefficient of x j is equal to
.1/j times the number fj .G/ of planted spanning forests (as defined in
the third proof of the Appendix to this chapter) of G with j components.
(b) Deduce from Theorem 5.12 that the sequence f1 .G/, f2 .G/; : : :, fp .G/ is
strongly log-concave.
(c) (extremely difficult) Let gk .G/ denote the number of spanning forests (but
not planted) of G with j components. Show that the sequence g1 .G/,
g2 .G/; : : :, gp .G/ is log-concave. (The graph K3 shows that this sequence
need not be strongly log-concave.)
9. Let G be a vertex-transitive graph with p vertices. (This means that for any
two vertices u; v there is an automorphism ' of G satisfying '.u/ D v.) Let A
denote the adjacency matrix of G. Show that for any integer n  1, tr.A n / is
divisible by p (where tr denotes trace).
10. (a) (moderately difficult) (*) Let G be a (finite) connected graph on a 2m-
element vertex set V . For any graph with vertices u and v, let .u; v/ denote
the number of edges adjacent to both u and v. Suppose that there is an
automorphism 'W V ! V of G all of whose cycles have length two. (In
other words, ' is a fixed-point free involution.) Define the quotient graph
G=' as follows. The vertices of G=' are the orbits of '. Thus G=' has m
vertices. Write Œv for the orbit containing vertex v, so Œv D fv; '.v/g. Set

.Œu; Œv/ D .u; v/ C .'.u/; v/:

For instance, if G is a 4-cycle and ' takes each vertex to its antipode, then
G=' consists of a double edge. If G is a 6-cycle and ' takes each vertex to
its antipode, then G=' is a triangle. If G D K4 , then G=' is a double edge
(for any '). If G D K3;3 then G=' is a 3-cycle for any '. Show that 2.G/
is divisible by .G='/, where  denotes the number of spanning trees.
(b) (difficult) Show in fact that .G/ is always divisible by .G='/.
150 9 The Matrix-Tree Theorem

11. (a) (difficult) (*) Show that the number s.n; q/ of invertible n  n symmetric
matrices over the field Fq is given by
(
q m.m1/ .q  1/.q 3  1/    .q 2m1  1/; n D 2m  1;
s.n; q/ D
q m.mC1/ .q  1/.q 3  1/    .q 2m1  1/; n D 2m:

(b) Find a formula for the number f .p/ of simple graphs on the vertex set Œp
with an odd number of spanning trees.
12. (*) Let S be a k-element subset of Œp. Show that the number fS .p/ of planted
forests on the vertex set Œp with exactly k components, whose set of roots is S ,
is given by fS .p/ D k nnk1 . Deduce that the total number fk .p/ of planted
forests on Œp with k components is given by
! !
p pk1 p  1 pk
fk .p/ D k p D p :
k k1
Chapter 10
Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

A famous problem which goes back to Euler asks for what graphs G is there a
closed walk which uses every edge exactly once. (There is also a version for non-
closed walks.) Such a walk is called an Eulerian tour (also known as an Eulerian
cycle). A graph which has an Eulerian tour is called an Eulerian graph. Euler’s
famous theorem (the first real theorem of graph theory) states that a graph G without
isolated vertices (which clearly would be irrelevant) is Eulerian if and only if it
is connected and every vertex has even degree. Here we will be concerned with
the analogous theorem for directed graphs. We want to know not just whether
an Eulerian tour exists, but also how many there are. We will prove an elegant
determinantal formula for this number closely related to the Matrix-Tree Theorem.
For the case of undirected graphs no analogous formula is known, explaining why
we consider only the directed case.
A (finite) directed graph or digraph D consists of a vertex set V D fv1 ; : : : ; vp g
and edge set E D fe1 ; : : : ; eq g, together with a function 'W E ! V  V (the set
of ordered pairs .u; v/ of elements of V ). If '.e/ D .u; v/, then we think of e as
an arrow from u to v. We then call u the initial vertex and v the final vertex of e.
(These concepts arose in the definition of an orientation in Definition 8.5.) A tour
in D is a sequence e1 ; e2 ; : : : ; er of distinct edges such that the final vertex of ei is
the initial vertex of ei C1 for all 1  i  r  1, and the final vertex of er is the initial
vertex of e1 . A tour is Eulerian if every edge of D occurs at least once (and hence
exactly once). A digraph which has no isolated vertices and contains an Eulerian
tour is called an Eulerian digraph. Clearly an Eulerian digraph is connected. The
outdegree of a vertex v, denoted outdeg.v/, is the number of edges of D with initial
vertex v. Similarly the indegree of v, denoted indeg.v/, is the number of edges of D
with final vertex v. A loop (edge e for which '.e/ D .v; v/) contributes one to both
the indegree and outdegree. A digraph is balanced if indeg.v/ D outdeg.v/ for all
vertices v.
10.1 Theorem. A digraph D without isolated vertices is Eulerian if and only if it is
connected and balanced.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 151
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 10,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
152 10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

Proof. Assume D is Eulerian, and let e1 ; : : : ; eq be an Eulerian tour. As we move

along the tour, whenever we enter a vertex v we must exit it, except at the very end
we enter the final vertex v of eq without exiting it. However, at the beginning we
exited v without having entered it. Hence every vertex is entered as often as it is
exited and so must have the same outdegree as indegree. Therefore D is balanced,
and as noted above D is clearly connected.
Now assume that D is balanced and connected. We may assume that D has at
least one edge. We first claim that for any edge e of D, D has a tour for which
e D e1 . If e1 is a loop we are done. Otherwise we have entered the vertex fin.e1 /
for the first time, so since D is balanced there is some exit edge e2 . Either fin.e2 / D
init.e1 / and we are done, or else we have entered the vertex fin.e2 / once more than
we have exited it. Since D is balanced there is new edge e3 with fin.e2 / D init.e3 /.
Continuing in this way, either we complete a tour or else we have entered the current
vertex once more than we have exited it, in which case we can exit along a new edge.
Since D has finitely many edges, eventually we must complete a tour. Thus D does
have a tour which uses e1 .
Now let e1 ; : : : ; er be a tour C of maximum length. We must show that r D q, the
number of edges of D. Assume to the contrary that r < q. Since in moving along C
every vertex is entered as often as it is exited (with init.e1 / exited at the beginning
and entered at the end), when we remove the edges of C from D we obtain a digraph
H which is still balanced, though it need not be connected. However, since D is
connected, at least one connected component H1 of H contains at least one edge
and has a vertex v in common with C [why?]. Since H1 is balanced, there is an edge
e of H1 with initial vertex v. The argument of the previous paragraph shows that H1
has a tour C 0 of positive length beginning with the edge e. But then when moving
along C , when we reach v we can take the “detour” C 0 before continuing with C .
This gives a tour of length longer than r, a contradiction. Hence r D q, and the
theorem is proved. t
u
Our primary goal is to count the number of Eulerian tours of a connected
balanced digraph. A key concept in doing so is that of an oriented tree. An oriented
tree with root v is a (finite) digraph T with v as one of its vertices, such that there
is a unique directed path from any vertex u to v. In other words, there is a unique
sequence of edges e1 ; : : : ; er such that (a) init.e1 / D u, (b) fin.er / D v, and (c)
fin.ei / D init.ei C1 / for 1  i  r  1. It’s easy to see that this means that the
underlying undirected graph (i.e., “erase” all the arrows from the edges of T ) is
a tree and that all arrows in T “point toward” v. There is a surprising connection
between Eulerian tours and oriented trees, given by the next result.
10.2 Theorem. Let D be a connected balanced digraph with vertex set V . Fix
an edge e of D, and let v D init.e/. Let .D; v/ denote the number of oriented
(spanning) subtrees of D with root v, and let .D; e/ denote the number of Eulerian
tours of D starting with the edge e. Then
Y
.D; e/ D .D; v/ .outdeg.u/  1/Š: (10.1)
u2V
10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees 153

Proof. Let e D e1 ; e2 ; : : : ; eq be an Eulerian tour E in D. For each vertex u ¤ v, let

e.u/ be the “last exit” from u in the tour, i.e., let e.u/ D ej where init(e.u// D u
and init.ek / ¤ u for any k > j .
Claim #1. The vertices of D, together with the edges e.u/ for all vertices u ¤ v,
form an oriented subtree of D with root v.
Proof of Claim #1. This is a straightforward verification. Let T be the spanning
subgraph of D with edges e.u/, u ¤ v. Thus if #V D p, then T has p vertices and
p  1 edges [why?]. There are three items to check to insure that T is an oriented
tree with root v:
(a) T does not have two edges f and f 0 satisfying init.f / D init.f 0 /. This is clear
since both f and f 0 can’t be last exits from the same vertex.
(b) T does not have an edge f with init.f / D v. This is clear since by definition
the edges of T consist only of last exits from vertices other than v, so no edge
of T can exit from v.
(c) T does not have a (directed) cycle C . For suppose C were such a cycle. Let f
be that edge of C which occurs after all the other edges of C in the Eulerian
tour E. Let f 0 be the edge of C satisfying fin.f / D init.f 0 / (D u, say). We
can’t have u D v by (b). Thus when we enter u via f , we must exit u. We can’t
exit u via f 0 since f occurs after f 0 in E. Hence f 0 is not the last exit from u,
contradicting the definition of T .
It’s easy to see that conditions (a)–(c) imply that T is an oriented tree with root v,
proving the claim.
Claim #2. We claim that the following converse to Claim #1 is true. Given a
connected balanced digraph D and a vertex v, let T be an oriented (spanning)
subtree of D with root v. Then we can construct an Eulerian tour E as follows.
Choose an edge e1 with init.e1 / D v. Then continue to choose any edge possible to
continue the tour, except we never choose an edge f of T unless we have to, i.e.,
unless it’s the only remaining edge exiting the vertex at which we stand. Then we
never get stuck until all edges are used, so we have constructed an Eulerian tour E.
Moreover, the set of last exits of E from vertices u ¤ v of D coincides with the set
of edges of the oriented tree T .
Proof of Claim #2. Since D is balanced, the only way to get stuck is to end up at
v with no further exits available, but with an edge still unused. Suppose this is the
case. At least one unused edge must be a last exit edge, i.e., an edge of T [why?].
Let u be a vertex of T closest to v in T such that the unique edge f of T with
init.f / D u is not in the tour. Let y D fin.f /. Suppose y ¤ v. Since we enter y as
often as we leave it, we don’t use the last exit from y. Thus y D v. But then we can
leave v, a contradiction. This proves Claim #2.
We have shown that every Eulerian tour E beginning with the edge e has
associated with it a “last exit” oriented subtree T D T .E/ with root v D init.e/.
Conversely, given an oriented subtree T with root v, we can obtain all Eulerian
tours E beginning with e and satisfying T D T .E/ by choosing for each vertex
154 10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

u ¤ v the order in which the edges from u, except the edge of T , appear in E, as
well as choosing the order in which all the edges from v except for e appear in E.
Q for each vertex u we have .outdeg.u/  1/Š choices, so for each T we have
Thus
u .outdeg.u/  1/Š choices. Since there are .D; v/ choices for T , the proof is
complete. t
u
10.3 Corollary. Let D be a connected balanced digraph, and let v be a vertex of D.
Then the number .D; v/ of oriented subtrees with root v is independent of v.

Proof. Let e be an edge with initial vertex v. By (10.1), we need to show that
the number .D; e/ of Eulerian tours beginning with e is independent of e. But
e1 e2    eq is an Eulerian tour if and only if ei ei C1    eq e1 e2    ei 1 is also an
Eulerian tour, and the proof follows [why?]. t
u

What we obviously need to do next is find a formula for .D; v/. This result
turns out to be very similar to the Matrix-Tree Theorem, and indeed we will show
(Example 10.6) that the Matrix-Tree Theorem is a simple corollary to Theorem 10.4.
10.4 Theorem. Let D be a connected digraph with vertex set V D fv1 ; : : : ; vp g and
with li loops at vertex vi . Let L.D/ be the p  p matrix defined by
8
ˆ
ˆ mij ; if i ¤ j and there are mij edges with
<
Lij D initial vertex vi and final vertex vj
ˆ
:̂
outdeg.vi /  li ; if i D j .

(Thus L is the directed analogue of the laplacian matrix of an undirected graph.)

Let L0 denote L with the last row and column deleted. Then

det L0 D .D; vp /: (10.2)

NOTE. If we remove the i th row and column from L instead of the last row and
column, then (10.2) still holds with vp replaced with vi .
Proof (Sketch). Induction on q, the number of edges of D. The fewest number of
edges which D can have is p  1 (since D is connected). Suppose then that D has
p  1 edges, so that as an undirected graph D is a tree. If D is not an oriented tree
with root vp , then some vertex vi ¤ vp of D has outdegree 0 [why?]. Then L0 has a
zero row, so det L0 D 0 D .D; vp /. If on the other hand D is an oriented tree with
root vp , then an argument like that used to prove Lemma 9.7 (in the case when S is
the set of edges of a spanning tree) shows that det L0 D 1 D .D; vp /.
Now assume that D has q > p  1 edges and assume the theorem for digraphs
with at most q  1 edges. We may assume that no edge f of D has initial vertex
vp , since such an edge belongs to no oriented tree with root vp and also makes no
contribution to L0 . It then follows, since D has at least p edges, that there exists a
vertex u ¤ vp of D of outdegree at least two. Let e be an edge with init.e/ D u.
Let D1 be D with the edge e removed. Let D2 be D with all edges e 0 removed such
10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees 155

that init.e/ D init.e 0 / and e 0 ¤ e. (Note that D2 is strictly smaller than D since
outdeg.u/  2.) By induction, we have det L0 .D1 / D .D1 ; vp / and det L0 .D2 / D
.D2 ; vp /. Clearly .D; vp / D .D1 ; vp / C .D2 ; vp /, since in an oriented tree T
with root vp , there is exactly one edge whose initial vertex coincides with that of e.
On the other hand, it follows immediately from the multilinearity of the determinant
[why?] that
det L0 .D/ D det L0 .D1 / C det L0 .D2 /:
From this the proof follows by induction. t
u
10.5 Corollary. Let D be a connected balanced digraph with vertex set V D
fv1 ; : : : ; vp g. Let e be an edge of D. Then the number .D; e/ of Eulerian tours
of D with first edge e is given by
Y
.D; e/ D .det L0 .D// .outdeg.u/  1/Š:
u2V

Equivalently (since D is balanced, so Lemma 9.9 applies), if L.D/ has eigenvalues

1 ; : : : ; p with p D 0, then

1 Y
.D; e/ D 1    p1 .outdeg.u/  1/Š:
p u2V

Proof. Combine Theorems 10.2 and 10.4. t

u
10.6 Example (the Matrix-Tree Theorem revisited). Let G D .V; E; '/ be a
connected loopless undirected graph. Let G b D .V; E;b b' / be the digraph obtained
from G by replacing each edge e of G, where '.e/ D fu; vg, with a pair e 0 and
e 00 of directed edges satisfying b
' .e 0 / D .u; v/ and b b
' .e 00 / D .v; u/. Clearly G
is balanced and connected. Choose a vertex v of G. There is an obvious one-to-
one correspondence between spanning trees T of G and oriented spanning trees
b of G
T b with root v, namely, direct each edge of T toward v. Moreover, L.G/ D
L.G/ b [why?]. Hence the Matrix-Tree Theorem is an immediate consequence of
Theorem 10.4.
10.7 Example (the efficient mail carrier). A mail carrier has an itinerary of city
blocks to which he (or she) must deliver mail. He wants to accomplish this by
walking along each block twice, once in each direction, thus passing along houses
on each side of the street. He also wants to end up where he started, which is where
his car is parked. The blocks form the edges of a graph G, whose vertices are the
intersections. The mail carrier wants simply to walk along an Eulerian tour in the
digraph Gb of the previous example. Making the plausible assumption that the graph
is connected, not only does an Eulerian tour always exist, but also we can tell the
mail carrier how many there are. Thus he will know how many different routes he
can take to avoid boredom. For instance, suppose G is the 3  3 grid illustrated
below.
156 10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

r r r

r r r

r r r

This graph has 192 spanning trees. Hence the number of mail carrier routes
beginning with a fixed edge (in a given direction) is 192  1Š4 2Š4 3Š D 18; 432.
The total number of routes is thus 18; 432 times twice the number of edges [why?],
viz., 18; 432  24 D 442; 368. Assuming the mail carrier delivered mail 250 days a
year, it would be 1769 years before he would have to repeat a route!
10.8 Example (binary de Bruijn sequences). A binary sequence is just a sequence
of 0’s and 1’s. A binary de Bruijn sequence of degree n is a binary sequence A D
a1 a2    a2m such that every binary sequence b1    bn of length n occurs exactly once
as a “circular factor” of A, i.e., as a sequence ai ai C1    ai Cn1 , where the subscripts
are taken modulo 2n if necessary. For instance, some circular factors of the sequence
abcdefg are a, bcde, fgab, and defga. Note that there are exactly 2n binary sequences
of length n, so the only possible length of a binary de Bruijn sequence of degree
n is 2n [why?]. Clearly any cyclic shift ai ai C1    a2n a1 a2    ai 1 of a binary de
Bruijn sequence a1 a2    a2n is also a binary de Bruijn sequence, and we call two
such sequences equivalent. This relation of equivalence is obviously an equivalence
relation, and every equivalence class contains exactly one sequence beginning with
n 0’s [why?]. Up to equivalence, there is one binary de Bruijn sequence of degree
two, namely, 0011. It’s easy to check that there are two inequivalent binary de
Bruijn sequences of degree three, namely, 00010111 and 00011101. However, it’s
not clear at this point whether binary de Bruijn sequences exist for all n. By a clever
application of Theorems 10.2 and 10.4, we will not only show that such sequences
exist for all positive integers n, but we will also count the number of them. It turns
out that there are lots of them. For instance, the number of inequivalent binary de
Bruijn sequences of degree eight is equal to

1329227995784915872903807060280344576;

as the reader can easily check by writing down all these sequences. De Bruijn
sequences have a number of interesting applications to the design of switching
networks and related topics.
Our method of enumerating binary de Bruijn sequences will be to set up
a correspondence between them and Eulerian tours in a certain directed graph
Dn , the de Bruijn graph of degree n. The graph Dn has 2n1 vertices, which
we will take to consist of the 2n1 binary sequences of length n  1. A pair
.a1 a2    an1 ; b1 b2    bn1 / of vertices forms an edge of Dn if and only if
a2 a3    an1 D b1 b2    bn2 , i.e., e is an edge if the last n  2 terms of init.e/ agree
with the first n2 terms of fin.e/. Thus every vertex has indegree two and outdegree
10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees 157

two [why?], so Dn is balanced. The number of edges of Dn is 2n . Moreover, it’s

easy to see that Dn is connected (see Lemma 10.9). The graphs D3 and D4 look as
follows:

000

00 001 100

01 10
010 101

11 011 110

111

Suppose that E D e1 e2    e2n is an Eulerian tour in Dn . If fin.ei / is the binary

sequence ai;1 ai;2    ai;n1 , then replace ei in E by the last bit ai;n1 . For instance,
the Eulerian tour (where we simply write the vertices)

000; 000; 001; 010; 101; 011; 111; 111; 110; 101; 010; 100; 001; 011; 110; 100; 000

corresponds to the sequence 0101111010011000 (the last bits of the vertices above,
excluding the first vertex 000). It is easy to see that the resulting sequence ˇ.E/ D
a1;n1 a2;n1    a2n ;n1 is a binary de Bruijn sequence, and conversely every binary
de Bruijn sequence arises in this way. In particular, since Dn is balanced and
connected there exists at least one binary de Bruijn sequence. In order to count the
total number of such sequences, we need to compute det L.Dn /. One way to do this
is by a clever but messy sequence of elementary row and column operations which
transforms the determinant into triangular form. We will give instead an elegant
computation of the eigenvalues of L.Dn / based on the following simple lemma.
10.9 Lemma. Let u and v be any two vertices of Dn . Then there is a unique
(directed) walk from u to v of length n  1.

Proof. Suppose u D a1 a2    an1 and v D b1 b2    bn1 . Then the unique path of

length n  1 from u to v has vertices

a1 a2    an1 ; a2 a3    an1 b1 ; a3 a4    an1 b1 b2 ; : : : ;

an1 b1    bn2 ; b1 b2    bn1 :

t
u
158 10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

10.10 Theorem. The eigenvalues of L.Dn / are 0 (with multiplicity one) and 2 (with
multiplicity 2n1  1/.

Proof. Let A.Dn / denote the directed adjacency matrix of Dn , i.e., the rows and
columns are indexed by the vertices, with

1; if .u; v/ is an edge;
Auv D
0; otherwise:

Now Lemma 10.9 is equivalent to the assertion that A n1 D J , the 2n1  2n1
matrix of all 1’s [why?]. If the eigenvalues of A are 1 ; : : : 2n1 , then the
eigenvalues of J D A n1 are n1 n1
1 ; : : : ; 2n1 . By Lemma 1.4, the eigenvalues of J
are 2 n1
(once) and 0 (2 n1
 1 times). Hence the eigenvalues of A are 2 (once,
where  is an .n  1/-st root of unity to be determined) and 0 (2n1  1 times). Since
the trace of A is 2, it follows that  D 1, and we have found all the eigenvalues
of A.
Now L.Dn / D 2I  A.Dn / [why?]. Hence the eigenvalues of L are 2 
1 ; : : : ; 2  2n1 , and the proof follows from the above determination of
1 ; : : : ; 2n1 . t
u

10.11 Corollary. The number B0 .n/ of binary de Bruijn sequences of degree n

beginning with n 0’s is equal to 22 n . The total number B.n/ of binary de Bruijn
n1

n1
sequences of degree n is equal to 22 .

Proof. By the above discussion, B0 .n/ is the number of Eulerian tours in Dn whose
first edge is the loop at vertex 00    0. Moreover, the outdegree of every vertex of
Dn is two. Hence by Corollary 10.5 and Theorem 10.10 we have

1 n1 1 n1 n
B0 .n/ D 22 D 22 :
2n1

Finally, B.n/ is obtained from B0 .n/ by multiplying by the number 2n of edges, and
the proof follows. t
u
n
Note that the total number of binary sequences of length 2n is N D 22 . By pthe
previous corollary, the number of these which are de Bruijn sequences is just N .
This suggests the following problem, which remained open until 2009. Let An be
the set of all binary sequences of length 2n . Let Bn be the set of binary de Bruijn
sequences of degree n. Find an explicit bijection

W Bn  Bn ! An ; (10.3)

thereby giving a combinatorial proof of Corollary 10.11.

Exercises for Chap. 10 159

Notes for Chap. 10

The characterization of Eulerian digraphs given by Theorem 10.1 is a result of

I.J. Good [45], while the fundamental connection between oriented subtrees and
Eulerian tours in a balanced digraph that was used to prove Theorem 10.2 was shown
by T. van Aardenne-Ehrenfest and N.G. de Bruijn [119, Theorem 5a]. This result
is sometimes called the BEST Theorem, after de Bruijn, van Aardenne-Ehrenfest,
Smith, and Tutte. However, Smith and Tutte were not involved in the original
discovery. (In [99] Smith and Tutte give a determinantal formula for the number
of Eulerian tours in a special class of balanced digraphs. Van Aardenne-Ehrenfest
and de Bruijn refer to the paper of Smith and Tutte in a footnote added in proof.)
The determinantal formula for the number of oriented subtrees of a directed graph
(Theorem 10.4) is due to Tutte [116, Theorem 3.6].
De Bruijn sequences are named from the paper [24] of de Bruijn, where they are
enumerated in the binary case. However, it was discovered by R. Stanley in 1975 that
this work had been done earlier by C. Flye Sainte-Marie [35] in 1894, as reported
by de Bruijn [26]. The generalization to d -ary de Bruijn sequences (Exercise 2)
is due to T. van Ardenne-Ehrenfest and de Bruijn [119]. Some recent work in this
area appears in a special issue [109] of Discrete Mathematics. Some entertaining
applications to magic are given by P. Diaconis and R. Graham [29, Chaps. 2–4]. The
bijection of (10.3) is due to H. Bidkhori and S. Kishore [8].

Exercises for Chap. 10

1. Choose positive integers a1 ; : : : ; ap1 . Let D D D.a1 ; : : : ; ap1 / be the digraph

defined as follows. The vertices of D are v1 ; : : : ; vp . For each 1  i  p  1,
there are ai edges from xi to xi C1 and ai edges from xi C1 to xi . For instance,
D.1; 3; 2/ looks like

(a) Find by a direct argument (no determinants) the number .D; v/ of oriented
subtrees with a given root v.
(b) Find the number .D; e/ of Eulerian tours of D whose first edge is e.
2. Let d > 1. A d -ary de Bruijn sequence of degree n is a sequence A D
a1 a2    ad n whose entries ai belong to f0; 1; : : : ; d  1g such that every d -ary
sequence b1 b2    bn of length n occurs exactly once as a circular factor of A.
160 10 Eulerian Digraphs and Oriented Trees

Find the number of d -ary de Bruijn sequences of length n which begin with n
0’s.
3. Let G be a regular loopless (undirected) graph of degree d with p vertices and q
edges.
(a) Find a simple relation between p, q, and d .
(b) (*) Express the largest eigenvalue of the adjacency matrix A of G in terms
of p, q, and d .
(c) Suppose also that G has no multiple edges. Express the number of closed
walks in G of length two in terms of p, q, and d .
(d) Suppose that G has no multiple edges and that the number of closed walks
in G of length ` is given by

6` C 2  .3/` :

Find the number .G/ of spanning trees of G. (Don’t forget that A may have
some eigenvalues equal to 0.) Give a purely numerical answer, not involving
p, q, or d .
(e) Let G be as in (d). How many closed walks in G walk along each edge of G
exactly once in each direction? Give a purely numerical answer.
4. (difficult) Let f .p/ be the number of loopless connected digraphs D on the
vertex set Œp such that D has exactly one Eulerian tour (up to cyclic shift).
For instance, f .3/ D 5; two such digraphs are triangles, and three consist of two
2-cycles with a common vertex. Show that

f .p/ D .p C 2/.p C 3/    .2p  1/; p  2:

5. Suppose that the connected digraph D has p vertices, each of outdegree d and
indegree d . Let D 0 be the graph obtained from D by doubling each edge, i.e.,
replacing each edge u ! v with two such edges. Express .D 0 ; e 0 / (the number
of Eulerian tours of D 0 beginning with the edge e 0 of D 0 ) in terms of .D; e/.
6. Let D be a digraph with p vertices, and let ` be a fixed positive integer. Suppose
that for every pair u; v of vertices of D, there is a unique (directed) walk of length
` from u to v.
(a) (*) What are the eigenvalues of the (directed) adjacency matrix A.D/?
(b) How many loops .v; v/ does D have?
(c) (*) Show that D is connected and balanced.
(d) Show that all vertices have the same indegree d and same outdegree, which
by (c) is also d . Find a simple formula relating p, d , and `.
(e) How many Eulerian tours does D have?
(f) (*) (open–ended) What more can be said about D? Show that D need not be
a de Bruijn graph (the graphs used to solve #2).
Exercises for Chap. 10 161

7. (a) Let n  3. Show that there does not exist a sequence a1 ; a2 ; : : : ; anŠ such
that the nŠ circular factors ai ; ai C1 ; : : : ; ai Cn1 (subscripts taken modulo nŠ
if necessary) are the nŠ permutations of Œn.
(b) Show that for all n  1 there does exist a sequence a1 ; a2 ; : : : ; anŠ such that
the nŠ circular factors ai ; ai C1 ; : : : ; ai Cn2 consist of the first n  1 terms
b1 ; : : : ; bn1 of all permutations b1 ; b2 ; : : : ; bn of Œn. Such sequences are
called universal cycles for Sn . When n D 3, an example of such a universal
cycle is 123213.
(c) When n D 3, find the number of universal cycles beginning with 123.
(d) (unsolved) Find the number Un of universal cycles for Sn beginning with
1; 2; : : : ; n. It is known that

U4 D 27  3:
U5 D 233  38  53 :
U6 D 2190  349  533 :
U7 D 21217  3123  5119  75  1128  4335  7320  7921  10935 :

Moreover, U9 is divisible by p 168 , where p D 59229013196333 is prime.

Most likely there is not a “nice” formula for Un . Some, but not all, of
the factorization of Un into lots of factors can be explained using the
representation theory of Sn , a topic beyond the scope of this text.
Chapter 11
Cycles, Bonds, and Electrical Networks

11.1 The Cycle Space and Bond Space

In this chapter we will deal with some interesting linear algebra related to the
structure of a directed graph. Let D D .V; E/ be a digraph. A function f W E ! R
is called a circulation if for every vertex v 2 V we have
X X
f .e/ D f .e/: (11.1)
e2E e2E
init.e/Dv fin.e/Dv

Thus if we think of the edges as pipes and f as measuring the flow (quantity per
unit of time) of some commodity (such as oil) through the pipes in the specified
direction (so that a negative value of f .e/ means a flow of jf .e/j in the direction
opposite the direction of e), then (11.1) simply says that the amount flowing into
each vertex equals the amount flowing out. In other words, the flow is conservative.
The figure below illustrates a circulation in a digraph D.

3
−1
5 2 4 7 π

−6
3

Let C D CD denote the set of all circulations on D. Clearly if f; g 2 C and

˛; ˇ 2 R then ˛f C ˇg 2 C. Hence C is a (real) vector space, called the cycle space
of D. Thus if q D #E, then CD is a subspace of the q-dimensional vector space RE
of all functions f W E ! R.
What do circulations have do with something “circulating,” and what does the
cycle space have to do with actual cycles? To see this, define a circuit or elementary
cycle in D to be a set of edges of a closed walk, ignoring the direction of the arrows,

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 163
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 11,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
164 11 Cycles and Bonds

with no repeated vertices except the first and last. Suppose that C has been assigned
an orientation (direction of travel) o. (Note that this meaning of orientation is not
the same as that appearing in Definition 9.5.)

Define a function fC W E ! R (which also depends on the orientation o, though we

suppress it from the notation) by
8
< 1; if e 2 C and e agrees with o;
fC .e/ D 1; if e 2 C and e is opposite to o;
:
0; otherwise:
It is easy to see that fC is a circulation. Later we will see that the circulations fC
span the cycle space C, explaining the terminology “circulation” and “cycle space.”
The figure below shows a circuit C with an orientation o and the corresponding
circulation fC .

−1 −1

−1 1

Given a function 'W V ! R, called a potential on D, define a new function

ı'W E ! R, called the coboundary1 of ', by

ı'.e/ D '.v/  '.u/; if u D init.e/ and v D fin.e/.

Figure 11.1 shows a digraph D with the value '.v/ of some function 'W V ! R
indicated at each vertex v and the corresponding values ı'.e/ shown at each edge e.
One should regard ı as an operator which takes an element ' of the vector space
RV of all functions V ! R and produces an element of the vector space RE of all
functions E ! R. It is immediate from the definition of ı that ı is linear, i.e.,

ı.a'1 C b'2 / D a  ı'1 C b  ı'2 ;

1
The term “coboundary” arises from algebraic topology, but we will not explain the connection
here.
11.1 The Cycle Space and Bond Space 165

Fig. 11.1 A function 2 −1

(potential) and its coboundary −3
4
−3 3 1 3 0
3
3
5 5 0

for all '1 ; '2 2 RV and a; b 2 R. Thus ı is simply a linear transformation ıW RV !

RE between two finite-dimensional vector spaces.
A function gW E ! R is called a potential difference on D if g D ı' for some
'W V ! R. (Later we will see the connection with electrical networks that accounts
for the terminology “potential difference.”) Let B D BD be the set of all potential
differences on D. Thus B is just the image of the linear transformation ı and is
hence a real vector space, called the bond space of D.
Let us explain the reason behind the terminology “bond space.” A bond in a
digraph D is a set B of edges such that (a) removing B from D disconnects some
(undirected) component of D (i.e., removing B creates a digraph which has more
connected components, as an undirected graph, than D) and (b) no proper subset
of B has this property. A subset of edges satisfying (a) is called a cutset, so a bond
is just a minimal cutset. Suppose, for example, that D is given as follows (with no
arrows drawn since they are irrelevant to the definition of bond):

b c d

Then the bonds are the six subsets ab; de; acd; bce; ace, and bcd .
Let B be a bond. Suppose B disconnects the component .V 0 ; E 0 / into two pieces
(a bond always disconnects some component into exactly two pieces [why?]) with
vertex set S in one piece and SN in the other. Thus S [ SN D V 0 and S \ SN D ;.
Define

ŒS; SN  D fe 2 EW exactly one vertex of e lies in S and one lies in SN g:

Clearly B D ŒS; SN . It is often convenient to use the notation ŒS; SN  for a bond.
Given a bond B D ŒS; SN  of D, define a function gB W E ! R by
8
< 1; if init.e/ 2 SN , fin.e/ 2 S ;
gB .e/ D 1; if init.e/ 2 S , fin.e/ 2 SN ;
:
0; otherwise.
166 11 Cycles and Bonds

Note that gB really depends not just on B, but also on whether we write B as ŒS; SN 
or ŒSN ; S . Writing B in the reverse way simply changes the sign of gB . Whenever
we deal with gB we will assume that some choice B D ŒS; SN  has been made.
Now note that gB D ı', where

1; if v 2 S ;
'.v/ D
0; if v 62 S :

Hence gB 2 B, the bond space of D. We will later see that B is in fact spanned by
the functions gB , explaining the terminology “bond space.”
11.1 Example. In the digraph below, open (white) vertices indicate an element of
S and closed (black) vertices an element of SN for a certain bond B D ŒS; SN . The
elements of B are drawn with solid lines. The edges are labelled by the values of gB
and the vertices by the function ' for which gB D ı'.

1 0
−1
0

0 0 1 −1 0

1
1 0 1

Recall that in Definition 9.5 we defined the incidence matrix M .G/ of a loopless
undirected graph G with respect to an orientation o. We may just as well think of G
together with its orientation o as a directed graph. We also will allow loops. Thus if
D D .V; E/ is any (finite) digraph, define the incidence matrix M D M .D/ to be
the p  q matrix whose rows are indexed by V and columns by E, as follows. The
entry in row v 2 V and column e 2 E is denoted mv .e/ and is given by
8
< 1; if v D init.e/ and e is not a loop;
mv .e/ D 1; if v D fin.e/ and e is not a loop;
:
0; otherwise:

For instance, if D is given by

1 2 5
3
4

2
11.1 The Cycle Space and Bond Space 167

then
2 3
1 1 1 0 0
6 7
M .D/ D 4 1 1 0 1 05:
0 0 1 1 0
11.2 Theorem. The row space of M .D/ is the bond space BD . Equivalently, the
functions mv W E ! R, where v ranges over all vertices of D, span BD .

Proof. Let g D ı' be a potential difference on D, so

g.e/ D '.fin.e//  '.init.e//

X
D '.v/mv .e/:
v2V

P
Thus g D v2V '.v/mP v , so g belongs to the row space of M .
Conversely, if g D v2V .v/mv is in the row space of M , where W V ! R,
then g D ı 2 B. t
u

We now define a scalar product (or inner product) on the space RE by

X
hf; gi D f .e/g.e/;
e2E

for any f; g 2 RE . If we think of the numbers f .e/ and g.e/ as the coordinates of
f and g with respect to the basis E, then hf; gi is just the usual dot product of f
and g. Because we have a scalar product, we have a notion of what it means for f
and g to be orthogonal, viz., hf; gi D 0. If V is any subspace of RE , then define the
orthogonal complement V ? of V by

V ? D ff 2 RE W hf; gi D 0 for all g 2 Vg:

Recall from linear algebra that

dim V C dim V ? D dim RE D #E: (11.2)

 ?
Furthermore, V ? D V. Let us also note that since we are working over R, we
have V \ V ? D f0g. Thus RE D V ˚ V ? (direct sum).
Intuitively there is a kind of “duality” between elementary cycles and bonds. Cy-
cles “hold vertices together,” while bonds “tear them apart.” The precise statement
of this duality is given by the next result.
11.3 Theorem. The cycle and bond spaces of D are related by C D B ? .
(Equivalently, B D C ? .)
168 11 Cycles and Bonds

Proof. Let f W E ! R. Then f is a circulation if and only if

X
mv .e/f .e/ D 0
e2E

for all v 2 V [why?]. But this is exactly the condition that f 2 B ? . t

u

11.2 Bases for the Cycle Space and Bond Space

We want to examine the incidence matrix M .D/ in more detail. In particular, we

would like to determine which rows and columns of M .D/ are linearly independent
and which span the row and column spaces. As a corollary, we will determine
the dimension of the spaces B and C. We begin by defining the support kf k of
f W E ! R to be the set of edges e 2 E for which f .e/ ¤ 0.
11.4 Lemma. If 0 ¤ f 2 C, then kf k contains an undirected circuit.
Proof. If not, then kf k has a vertex of degree one [why?], which is clearly
impossible. t
u
11.5 Lemma. If 0 ¤ g 2 B, then kgk contains a bond.
Proof. Let 0 ¤ g 2 B, so g D ı' for some 'W V ! R. Choose a vertex v which is
incident to an edge of kgk and set

U D fu 2 V W '.u/ D '.v/g:

Let UN D V  U . Note that UN ¤ ;, since otherwise ' is constant so g D 0. Since

g.e/ ¤ 0 for all e 2 ŒU; UN  [why?], we have that kgk contains the cutset ŒU; UN .
Since a bond is by definition a minimal cutset, it follows that kgk contains a bond.
t
u
A matrix B is called a basis matrix of B if the rows of B form a basis for B.
Similarly define a basis matrix C of C.
Recall the notation of Theorem 9.4: let A be a matrix with at least as many
columns as rows, whose columns are indexed by the elements of a set T . If S  T ,
then AŒS  denotes the submatrix of A consisting of the columns indexed by the
elements of S . In particular, AŒe (short for AŒfeg) denotes the column of A indexed
by e. We come to our first significant result about bases for the vector spaces B
and C.
11.6 Theorem. Let B be a basis matrix of B and C a basis matrix of C. (Thus the
columns of B and C are indexed by the edges e 2 E of D.) Let S  E, Then:
(i) The columns of BŒS  are linearly independent if and only if S is acyclic (i.e.,
contains no circuit as an undirected graph).
11.2 Bases for the Cycle Space and Bond Space 169

(ii) The columns of C ŒS  are linearly independent if and only if S contains no bond.

Proof. The columns of BŒS  are linearly dependent if and only if there exists a
function f W E ! R such that

f .e/ ¤ 0 for some e 2 S ;

f .e/ D 0 for all e 62 S ;
X
f .e/BŒe D 0; the column vector of 0’s: (11.3)
e2E

The last condition is equivalent to hf; mv i D 0 for all v 2 V , i.e., f is a circulation.

Thus the columns of BŒS  are linearly dependent if and only if there exists a nonzero
circulation f such that kf k  S . By Lemma 11.4, kf k (and therefore S ) contains a
circuit. Conversely, if S contains a circuit C then 0 ¤ fC 2 C and kfC k D C  S ,
so fC defines a linear dependence relation (11.3) among the columns. Hence the
columns of BŒS  are linearly independent if and only if S is acyclic, proving (i).
(Part (i) can also be deduced from Lemma 9.7.)
The proof of (ii) is similar and is left as an exercise. t
u

11.7 Corollary. Let D D .V; E/ be a digraph with p vertices, q edges, and k

connected components (as an undirected graph). Then

dim B D p  k;
dim C D q  p C k:

Proof. For any matrix X , the rank of X is equal to the maximum number of linearly
independent columns. Now let B be a basis matrix of B. By Theorem 11.6(i), the
rank of B is then the maximum size (number of elements) of an acyclic subset of E.
In each connected component Di of D, the largest acyclic subsets are the spanning
trees, whose number of edges is p.Di /  1, where p.Di / is the number of vertices
of Di . Hence

X
k
rank B D .p.Di /  1/
i D1

D p  k:

Since dim B C dim C D dim RE D q by (11.2) and Theorem 11.3, we have

dim C D q  .p  k/ D q  p C k:

(It is also possible to determine dim C by a direct argument similar to our

determination of dim B.) t
u
170 11 Cycles and Bonds

The number q p Ck (which should be thought of as the number of independent

cycles in D) is called the cyclomatic number of D (or of its undirected version G,
since the direction of the edges has no effect).
Our next goal is to describe explicit bases of C and B. Recall that a forest is
an undirected graph without circuits, or equivalently, a disjoint union of trees. We
extend the definition of forest to directed graphs by ignoring the arrows, i.e., a
directed graph is a forest if it has no circuits as an undirected graph. Equivalently
[why?], dim C D 0.
Pick a maximal forest T of D D .V; E/. Thus T restricted to each component of
D is a spanning tree. If e is an edge of D not in T , then it is easy to see that T [ e
contains a unique circuit Ce .
11.8 Theorem. Let T be as above. Then the set S of circulations fCe , as e ranges
over all edges of D not in T , is a basis for the cycle space C.

Proof. The circulations fCe are linearly independent, since for each e 2 E.D/ 
E.T / only fCe doesn’t vanish on e. Moreover,

#S D #E.D/  #E.T / D q  p C k D dim C;

so S is a basis. t
u

11.9 Example. Let D be the digraph shown below, with the edges a; b; c of T
shown by dotted lines.

c f
a d

Orient each circuit Ct in the direction of the added edge, i.e., fCt .t/ D 1. Then the
basis matrix C of C corresponding to the basis fCd ; fCe ; fCf is given by
2 3
0 1 1 1 0 0
C D 4 1 1 1 0 1 05: (11.4)
0 0 1 0 0 1

We next want to find a basis for the bond space B analogous to that of
Theorem 11.8.
11.10 Lemma. Let T be a maximal forest of D D .V; E/. Let T  D D  E.T /
(the digraph obtained from D by removing the edges of T ), called a cotree if D is
connected. Let e be an edge of T . Then E.T  / [ e contains a unique bond.
11.2 Bases for the Cycle Space and Bond Space 171

Proof. Removing E.T  / from D leaves a maximal forest T , so removing one

further edge e disconnects some component of D. Hence E.T  / [ e contains a
bond B. It remains to show that B is unique. Removing e from T breaks some
component of T into two connected graphs T1 and T2 with vertex sets S and SN . It
follows [why?] that we must have B D ŒS; SN , so B is unique. t
u
Let T be a maximal forest of the digraph D, and let e be an edge of T . By the
previous lemma, E.T  /[e contains a unique bond Be . Let gBe be the corresponding
element of the bond space B, chosen for definiteness so that gBe .e/ D 1.
11.11 Theorem. The set of functions gBe , as e ranges over all edges of T , is a basis
for the bond space B.

Proof. The functions gBe are linearly independent, since only gBe is nonzero on
e 2 E.T /. Since

#E.T / D p  k D dim B;

it follows that the gBe ’s are a basis for B. t

u

11.12 Example. Let D and T be as in the previous diagram. Thus a basis for B is
given by the functions gBa ; gBb ; gBc . The corresponding basis matrix is given by

2 3
1 0 0 0 1 0
B D 40 1 0 1 1 05:
0 0 1 1 1 1

Note that the rows of B are orthogonal to the rows of the matrix C of (11.4), in
accordance with Theorem 11.3. Equivalently, BC t D 0, the 3  3 zero matrix.
(In general, BC t will have q  p C k rows and p  k columns. Here it is just a
coincidence that these two numbers are equal.)
The basis matrices C T and B T of C and B obtained from a maximal forest T
have an important property. A real matrix m  n matrix A with m  n is said to be
unimodular if every m  m submatrix has determinant 0, 1, or 1. For instance, the
adjacency matrix M .D/ of a digraph D is unimodular, as proved in Lemma 9.7 (by
showing that the expansion of the determinant of a full submatrix has at most one
nonzero term).
11.13 Theorem. Let T be a maximal forest of D. Then the basis matrices C T of C
and B T of B are unimodular.

Proof. First consider the case C T . Let P be a full submatrix of C (so P has
q  p C k rows and columns). Assume det P ¤ 0. We need to show det P D ˙1.
Since det P ¤ 0, it follows from Theorem 11.6(ii) that P D C T ŒT1  for the
complement T1 of some maximal forest T1 . Note that the rows of the matrix
172 11 Cycles and Bonds

C T ŒT1  are indexed by T  and the columns by T1 . Similarly the rows of the basis
matrix C T1 are indexed by T1 and the columns by E (the set of all edges of D).
Hence it makes sense to define the matrix product

Z D C T ŒT1 C T1 ;

a matrix whose rows are indexed by T  and columns by E.

Note that the matrix Z is a basis matrix for the cycle space C since its rows are
linear combinations of the rows of the basis matrix CT1 , and it has full rank since the
matrix C T ŒT1  is invertible. Now C T1 ŒT1  D IT1 (the identity matrix indexed by
T1 ), so Z ŒT1  D C T ŒT1 . Thus Z agrees with the basis matrix C T in columns T1 .
Hence the rows of Z  C T are circulations supported on a subset of T1 . Since T1 is
acyclic, it follows from Lemma 11.4 that the only such circulation is identically 0,
so Z D C T .
We have just shown that

C T ŒT1 C T1 D C T :

Restricting both sides to T  , we obtain

C T ŒT1 C T1 ŒT   D C T ŒT   D IT  :

Taking determinants yields

det.C T ŒT1 / det.C T1 ŒT  / D 1:

Since all the matrices we have been considering have integer entries, the above
determinants are integers. Hence

det C T ŒT1  D ˙1;

as was to be proved.
A similar proof works for B T . t
u

11.3 Electrical Networks

We will give a brief indication of the connection between the above discussion and
the theory of electrical networks. Let D be a digraph, which for convenience we
assume is connected and loopless. Suppose that at each edge e there is a voltage
(potential difference) Ve from init e to fin e and a current Ie in the direction of e (so
a negative current Ie indicates a current of jIe j in the direction opposite to e). Think
of V and I as functions on the edges, i.e., as elements of the vector space RE . There
are three fundamental laws relating the quantities Ve and Ie .
11.3 Electrical Networks 173

Kirchhoff’s First Law. I 2 CD . In other words, the current flowing into a vertex
equals the current flowing out. In symbols,
X X
Ie D Ie ;
e e
init eDv fin eDv

for all vertices v 2 V .

?
Kirchhoff’s Second Law. V 2 CD D B. In other words, the sum of the voltages
around any circuit (called loops by electrical engineers), taking into account
orientations, is 0.
Ohm’s Law. If edge e has resistance Re > 0, then Ve D Ie Re .
The central problem of electrical network theory dealing with the above three
laws2 is the following: which of the 3q quantities Ve ; Ie ; Re need to be specified
to uniquely determine all the others, and how can we find or stipulate the solution
in a fast and elegant way? We will be concerned here only with a special case,
perhaps the most important special case in practical applications. Namely, suppose
we apply a voltage Vq at edge eq , with resistances R1 ; : : : ; Rq1 at the other edges
e1 ; : : : ; eq1 . Let Vi ; Ii be the voltage and current at edge ei . We would like to
express each Vi and Ii in terms of Vq and R1 ; : : : ; Rq1 . By “physical intuition”
there should be a unique solution, since we can actually build a network meeting the
specifications of the problem. Note that if we have quantities Vi ; Ii ; Ri satisfying the
three network laws above, then for any scalar ˛ the quantities ˛Vi ; ˛Ii ; Ri are also
a solution. This means that we might as well assume that Vq D 1, since we can
always multiply all voltages and currents afterwards by whatever value we want Vq
to be.
As an illustration of a simple method of computing the total resistance of a
network, the following diagram illustrates the notion of a series connection D1 CD2
and a parallel connection D1 k D2 of two networks D1 and D2 with a distinguished
edge e at which a voltage is applied.

A e B e e A B e

A
D1 D2 D1 || D2
D1 + D2

2
Of course the situation becomes much more complicated when one introduces dynamic network
elements like capacitors, alternating current, etc.
174 11 Cycles and Bonds

When we apply a voltage Vq > 0 the current will flow along eq from the
higher potential to the lower. Thus Vq =Iq < 0, so we should define the total
resistance R.D/ of the network D, together with the distinguished edge e, by
R.D/ D Vq =Iq . It is well known and easy to deduce from the three network
laws that

R.D1 C D2 / D R.D1 / C R.D2 /;

1 1 1
D C :
R.D1 k D2 / R.D1 / R.D2 /

A network that is built up from a single edge by a sequence of series and parallel
connections is called a series–parallel network. An example is the following, with
the distinguished edge e shown by a broken line from bottom to top.

The simplest network which is not a series–parallel network is called the Wheatstone
bridge and is illustrated below. (The direction of the arrows has been chosen
arbitrarily.) We will use this network as our main example in the discussion that
follows.

1 2
3
6
4 5

We now return to an arbitrary connected loopless digraph D, with currents Ii ,

voltages Vi , and resistances Ri at the edges ei . Recall that we are fixing Vq D 1
and R1 ; : : : ; Rq1 . Let T be a spanning tree of D. Since I is a current if and only
if it is orthogonal to the bond space B (Theorem 11.3 and Kirchhoff’s first law), it
follows that any basis for B defines a complete and minimal set of linear relations
satisfied by the Ii ’s (namely, the relation that I is orthogonal to the basis elements).
In particular, the basis matrix C T defines such a set of relations. For example, if D
11.3 Electrical Networks 175

is the Wheatstone bridge shown above and if T D fe1 ; e2 ; e5 g, then we obtain the
following relations by adding the edges e1 ; e2 ; e5 of T in turn to T  :

I1  I3  I4 D 0;

I2 C I3 C I4 C I6 D 0; (11.5)

I4 C I5 C I6 D 0:

These three (D p  1) equations give all the relations satisfied by the Ii ’s alone, and
the equations are linearly independent.
Similarly if V is a voltage then it is orthogonal to the cycle space C. Thus any
basis for C defines a complete and minimal set of linear relations satisfied by the Vi ’s
(namely, the relation that V is orthogonal to the basis elements). In particular, the
basis matrix CT defines such a set of relations. Continuing our example, we obtain
the following relations by adding the edges e3 ; e4 ; e6 of T  in turn to T :

V1  V2 C V3 D 0;

V1  V2 C V4  V5 D 0; (11.6)

V2 C V5 D 1:

These three (D q  p C k) equations give all the relations satisfied by the Vi ’s alone,
and the equations are linearly independent.
In addition, Ohm’s law gives the q  1 equations Vi D Ri Ii , 1  i  q  1.
We have a total of .p  k/ C .q  p C k/ C .q  1/ D 2q  1 equations in the
2q  1 unknowns Ii (1  i  q) and Vi (1  i  q  1). Moreover, it is easy to see
that these 2q  1 equations are linearly independent, using the fact that we already
know that just the equations involving the Ii ’s alone are linearly independent, and
similarly the Vi ’s. Hence this system of 2q  1 equations in 2q  1 unknowns has a
unique solution. We have now reduced the problem to straightforward linear algebra.
However, it is possible to describe the solution explicitly. We will be content here
with giving a formula just for the total resistance R.D/ D Vq =Iq D 1=Iq .
Write the 2q  1 equations in the form of a .2q  1/  2q matrix K . The columns
of the matrix are indexed by I1 ; I2 ; : : : ; Iq , V1 , V2 ; : : : ; Vq . The last column Vq of the
matrix keeps track of the constant terms of the equations. The rows of K are given
first by the equations among the Ii ’s, then the Vi ’s, and finally Ohm’s law. For our
example of the Wheatstone bridge, we obtain the matrix
176 11 Cycles and Bonds

I1 I2 I3 I4 I5 I6 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6
1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0
K D 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 :
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 1
R1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
0 R2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
0 0 R3 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
0 0 0 R4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
0 0 0 0 R5 0 0 0 0 0 1 0

We want to solve for Iq by Cramer’s rule. Call the submatrix consisting of all but
the last column X . Let Y be the result of replacing the Iq column of X by the last
column of K . Cramer’s rule then asserts that

det Y
Iq D :
det X

We evaluate det X by taking a Laplace expansion along the first p  1 rows. In other
words, X
det X D N
˙ det.X ŒŒp  1; S /  det.X ŒŒp  1c ; S/; (11.7)
S

where (a) S indexes all .p  1/-element subsets of the columns, (b) X ŒŒp  1; S 
denotes the submatrix of X consisting of entries in the first p  1 rows and in
the columns S , and (c) X ŒŒp  1c ; SN  denotes the submatrix of X consisting of
entries in the last 2q  p rows and in the columns other than S . In order for
det.X ŒŒp 1; S / ¤ 0, we must choose S D fIi1 ; : : : ; Iip1 g, where fei1 ; : : : ; eip1 g
is a spanning tree T1 (by Theorem 11.6(i)). In this case, det.X ŒŒp  1; S / D ˙1 by
Theorem 11.13. If Iq 62 S , then the Iq column of X ŒŒp  1c ; SN  will be zero. Hence
to get a nonzero term in (11.7), we must have eq 2 S . The matrix X ŒŒp 1c ; SN  will
have one nonzero entry in each of the first q pC1 columns, namely, the resistances
Rj where ej is not an edge of T1 . This accounts for q  p C 1 entries from the last
q1 rows of X ŒŒp1c ; SN . The remaining p2 of the last q1 rows have available
only one nonzero entry each, namely, a 1 in the columns indexed by Vj where ej
is an edge of T1 other than eq . Hence we need to choose q  p C 1 remaining
entries from rows p through q and columns indexed by Vj for ej not an edge of
T1 . By Theorems 11.6(ii) and 11.13, this remaining submatrix has determinant ˙1.
It follows that
Y
det.X ŒŒp  1; S /  det.X ŒŒp  1c ; SN / D ˙ Rj :
ej 62E.T1 /
11.3 Electrical Networks 177

Hence by (11.7), we get

0 1
X Y
det X D ˙@ Rj A ; (11.8)
T1 ej 62E.T1 /

where T1 ranges over all spanning trees of D containing eq . A careful analysis of the
signs (omitted here) shows that all signs in (11.8) are negative, so we finally arrive
at the remarkable formula
X Y
det X D  Rj :
spanning trees T1 ej 62E.T1 /
containing eq

For example, if D is the Wheatstone bridge as above, and if we abbreviate R1 D a,

R2 D b, R3 D c, R4 D d , R5 D e, then

 det X D abc C abd C abe C ace C ade C bcd C bde C cde:

Now suppose we replace column Iq in X by column Vq in the matrix K, obtaining

the matrix Y . There is a unique nonzero entry in the new column, so it must be
chosen in any nonzero term in the expansion of det Y . The argument now goes just
as it did for det X , except we have to choose S to correspond to a spanning tree T1
that doesn’t contain eq . We therefore obtain
X Y
det Y D Rj :
spanning trees T1 ej 62E.T1 /
not containing eq ej ¤eq

For example, for the Wheatstone bridge we get

det Y D ac C ad C ae C bc C bd C be C cd C ce:

Recall that Iq D det.Y /= det.X / and that the total resistance of the network is
1=Iq . Putting everything together gives our main result on electrical networks.
11.14 Theorem. In the situation described above, the total resistance of the network
is given by
X Y
Rj
spanning trees T1 ej 62E.T1 /
1 containing eq
R.D/ D  D X Y :
Iq Rj
spanning trees T1 ej 62E.T1 /
not containing eq ej ¤eq

11.15 Corollary. If the resistances R1 ; : : : ; Rq1 are all equal to one, then the total
resistance of the network is given by
178 11 Cycles and Bonds

1 number of spanning trees containing eq

R.D/ D  D :
Iq number of spanning trees not containing eq

In particular, if R1 D    D Rq1 D 1, then the total resistance, when reduced to

lowest terms a=b, has the curious property that the number .D/ of spanning trees
of D is divisible by a C b.

11.4 Planar Graphs (Sketch)

A graph G is planar if it can be drawn in the plane R2 without crossing edges.

A drawing of G in this way is called a planar embedding. An example of a planar
embedding is shown in Fig. 11.2. In this section we state the basic results on the
bond and cycle spaces of a planar graph. The proofs are relatively straightforward
and are omitted.
If the vertices and edges of a planar embedding of G are removed from R2 , then
we obtain a disjoint union of open sets, called the faces (or regions) of G. (More
precisely, these open sets are the faces of the planar embedding of G. Often we
will not bother to distinguish between a planar graph and a planar embedding if no
confusion should result.) Let R D R.G/ be the set of faces of G, and as usual V .G/
and E.G/ denote the set of vertices and edges of G, respectively.
NOTE. If G is a simple (no loops or multiple edges) planar embedding, then it
can be shown that there exists a planar embedding of the same graph with edges
as straight lines and with faces (regarding as the sequence of vertices and edges
obtained by walking around the boundaries of the faces) preserved.
The dual G  of the planar embedded graph G has vertex set R.G/ and edge set
E .G/ D fe  W e 2 E.G/g. If e is an edge of G, then let r and r 0 be the faces on its


two sides. (Possibly r D r 0 ; there are five such edges in Fig. 11.2.) Then define e 
to connect r and r 0 . We can always draw G  to be planar, letting e and e  intersect
once. If G is connected then every face of G  contains exactly one (nonisolated)
vertex of G and G  Š G. For any planar embedded graph G, the dual G  is
connected. Then G Š G  if and only if G is connected. In general, we always

Fig. 11.2 A planar

embedding
11.4 Planar Graphs (Sketch) 179

Fig. 11.3 A planar embedding and its dual

have G  Š G  . Figure 11.3 shows the dual G  to the graph G of Fig. 11.2, with
the vertices of G  drawn as open circles and the edges as broken lines.
11.16 Example. Let G consist of two disjoint edges. Then G  has one vertex and
two loops, while G  is a three-vertex path. The unbounded face of G  contains
two vertices of G, and G  6Š G.
Orient the edges of the planar graph G in any way to get a digraph D. Let r be
an interior (i.e., bounded) face of D. An outside edge of r is an edge e such that r
lies on one side of the edge, and a different face lies on the other side. The outside
edges of any interior face r define a circulation (shown as solid edges in the diagram
below), and these circulations (as r ranges over all interior faces of D) form a basis
for the cycle space CG of G.

Given the orientation D of G, orient the edges of G  as follows: as we walk

along e in the direction of its orientation, e  points to our right.
180 11 Cycles and Bonds

11.17 Theorem. Let f W E.G/ ! R. Define f  W E.G  / ! R by f  .e  / D f .e/.

Then

f 2 B G , f  2 CG  ;
f 2 CG , f  2 B G  :

11.18 Proposition. Let G be connected. The set S is the set of edges of a spanning
tree T of G if and only if S  D fe  W e 2 S g is the set of edges of a cotree T  of
G.
11.19 Corollary. If G is connected then .G/ D .G  /.
For nonplanar graphs there is still a notion of a “dual” object, but it is no longer a
graph but rather something called a matroid. Matroid theory is a flourishing subject
which may be regarded as a combinatorial abstraction of linear algebra.

11.5 Squaring the Square

A squared rectangle is a rectangle partitioned into finitely many (but more than one)
squares. A squared rectangle is perfect if all the squares are of different sizes. The
earliest perfect squared rectangle was found in 1936; its size is 33  32 and consists
of nine squares:
The question then arose: does there exist a perfect squared square? A single
example was found by Sprague in 1939; it has 55 squares. Then Brooks, Smith,
Stone, and Tutte developed a network theory approach which we now explain.
The Smith diagram D of a squared rectangle is a directed graph whose vertices
are the horizontal line segments of the squared rectangle and whose squares are
the edges, directed from top to bottom. The top vertex (corresponding to the top
edge of the rectangle being squared) and the bottom vertex (corresponding to the
bottom edge) are called poles. Label each edge by the side length of the square to
11.5 Squaring the Square 181

8 9
15 1

7
10
4

18
14

Fig. 11.4 A Smith diagram pole

9
8
1
15

7
10
4

18
14

pole

which it corresponds. Figure 11.4 shows the Smith diagram of the (perfect) squared
rectangle above.
The following result concerning Smith diagrams is straightforward to verify.
11.20 Theorem. (a) If we set Ie and Ve equal to the label of edge e, then
Kirchhoff’s two laws hold (so Re D 1) except at the poles.
(b) The Smith diagram is planar and can be drawn without separation of poles.
Joining the poles by an edge from the bottom to the top gives a 3-connected
graph, i.e., a connected graph that remains connected when one or two vertices
are removed.
182 11 Cycles and Bonds

Call the 3-connected graph of Theorem 11.20 the extended Smith diagram of the
a b squared rectangle. If we impose a current Ie1 D b on the new edge e1 (directed
from bottom to top) between poles, and a voltage Ve1 D a, then Kirchhoff’s two
laws hold at all vertices. The diagram below shows the extended Smith diagram
corresponding to Fig. 11.4, with the new edge e1 labelled by the current Ie1 .

pole

9
8
1
15

7
10

32 4

18
14

pole

We therefore have a recipe for searching for perfect squared rectangles and
squares: start listing all three-connected planar graphs. Then choose an edge e1 to
apply a voltage V1 . Put a resistance Re D 1 at the remaining edges e. Solve for Ie
(D Ve ) to get a squared rectangle and hope that one of these will be a square. One
example  found by Brooks et al. was a 112  75 rectangle with 14 squares. It was
given to Brooks’ mother as a jigsaw puzzle, and she found a different solution
!
We therefore have found a squared square (though not perfect):

Δ 75 x 75

112 x 112 Γ
Notes for Chap. 11 183

Building on this idea, Brooks et al. finally found two 422593 perfect rectangles
with thirteen squares, all 26 squares being of different sizes. Putting them together
as above gives a perfect squared square. This example has two defects: (a) it contains
a smaller perfect squared rectangle (and is therefore not simple) and (b) it contains
a “cross” (four squares meeting a point). They eventually found a perfect squared
square with 69 squares without either of these defects. It is now known (thanks to
computers) that the smallest order (number of squares) of a perfect squared square
is 21. It is unique and happens to be simple and crossfree. See the figure below. It is
known that the number (up to symmetry) of simple perfect squared squares of order
n for n  21 is 1; 8; 12; 26; 160; 441; 1152; : : : .

27
35
50
8
19
15 11
2 6
9 7 24
25 18
29
16
4

37 42
33

Notes for Chap. 11

The theory of cycle spaces and bond spaces developed here had its origins with
the pioneering work of G. Kirchhoff [63] in 1847. The proof given here of
Theorem 11.13 is due to W.T. Tutte [117] in 1965. A nice account of the history
of squaring the square due to Tutte appears in a Scientific American column by
Martin Gardner [44]. See also [118] for another article by Tutte. A further survey
article on this topic is by Kazarinoff and Weitzenkamp [62].
184 11 Cycles and Bonds

Exercises for Chap. 11

1. (a) Let Cn be the graph of the n-cube. Find the dimension of the bond space
and cycle space of Cn . Does there exist a circulation (with respect to some
orientation of Cn ) supported on three edges?
(b) Show that the cycle space CCn (with respect to some orientation of Cn ) is
spanned by circulations fC , where C is a circuit of length four.
2. What digraphs have the property that every nonempty set of edges is a cutset?
3. What is the size of the largest set of edges of the complete graph Kp that doesn’t
contain a bond? How many such sets are there?
4. (*) The cycle space CD and bond space BD of a finite digraph D were defined
over R. However, the definition works over any field K, even those of positive
characteristic. Show that the dimensions of these two spaces remain the same
for any K, i.e., dim CD D q  p C k and dim BD D p  k.
5. (a) A graph G is edge-transitive if its automorphism group Aut.G/ is transitive
on the edges, i.e., for any two edges e; e 0 of G, there in an automorphism 
which takes e to e 0 . For instance, the cube graph Cn is edge-transitive. Is an
edge-transitive graph also vertex-transitive? What about conversely? If we
consider only simple graphs (no loops or multiple edges), does that affect
the answers?
(b) Suppose that G is edge-transitive and has p vertices and q edges. A one
volt battery is placed on one edge e, and all other edges have a resistance
of one ohm. Express the total resistance Re D Ve =Ie of the network in
terms of p and q.
6. Let D be a loopless connected digraph with q edges. Let T be a spanning tree
of D. Let C be the basis matrix for the cycle space C of D obtained from T and
similarly B for the bond space (as described in Theorems 11.8 and 11.11).
(a) (*) Show that det C C t D det BB t D .D/, the number of spanning trees
of D (ignoring the directions of the edges).
(b) (*) Let

C
ZD ;
B
a q  q matrix. Show that det Z D ˙.D/.
7. (difficult) Let M be an m  n real unimodular matrix  such
 that every two
columns of M are linearly independent. Show that n  m2 .
8. Let D be a planar electrical network with edges e1 ; : : : ; eq . Place resistances
Ri D 1 at ei , 1  i  q  1, and place a voltage Vq D 1 at eq . Let D  be the
dual network, with the same resistances Ri at ei and voltage Vq at eq . What is
the connection between the total resistances R.D/ and R.D  /?
Exercises for Chap. 11 185

9. Let D be the extended Smith diagram of a squared rectangle, with the current
I and voltage V as defined in the text. What is the “geometric” significance of
the fact that hI; V i D 0?
10. Let D be the extended Smith diagram of an a  b squared rectangle. Show that
the number of spanning trees of D is divisible by a C b.
Chapter 12
Miscellaneous Gems of Algebraic Combinatorics

12.1 The 100 Prisoners

An evil warden is in charge of 100 prisoners (all with different names). He puts a
row of 100 boxes in a room. Inside each box is the name of a different prisoner. The
prisoners enter the room one at a time. Each prisoner must open 50 of the boxes, one
at a time. If any of the prisoners does not see his or her own name, then they are all
killed. The prisoners may have a discussion before the first prisoner enters the room
with the boxes, but after that there is no further communication. A prisoner may
not leave a message of any kind for another prisoner. In particular, all the boxes are
shut once a prisoner leaves the room. If all the prisoners choose 50 boxes at random,
then each has a success probability of 1/2, so the probability that they are not killed
is 2100 , not such good odds. Is there a strategy that will increase the chances of
success? What is the best strategy?
It’s not hard to see that the prisoners can achieve a success probability of greater
than 2100 . For instance, suppose that the first prisoner opens the first 50 boxes and
the second prisoner opens the last 50. If the first prisoner succeeds (with probability
1/2), then the first prisoner’s name is guaranteed not to be in one of the boxes opened
by the second prisoner, so the second prisoner’s probability of success is 50/99. Each
pair of prisoners can do this strategy, increasing the overall success probability to
.25=99/50, still an extremely low number. Can they do significantly better? The key
to understanding this problem is the realization that the prisoners do not have to
decide in advance on which boxes they will open. A prisoner can decide which box
to open next based on what he has seen in the boxes previously opened.
12.1 Theorem. There exists a strategy with a success probability of

X
100
1
1 D 0:3118278207    :
j D51
j

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 187
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8 12,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
188 12 Miscellaneous Gems

Proof. The prisoners assign themselves the numbers 1; 2; : : : ; 100 by whatever

method they prefer. Each prisoner is assigned a different number. The prisoners
memorize everyone’s number. They regard the boxes, which are lined up in a row,
as being numbered 1; 2; : : : ; 100 from left to right. A prisoner with number k first
goes to box k. If the prisoner sees his name, then he breathes a temporary sigh of
relief, and the next prisoner enters. Otherwise the first prisoner will see the name
of some other prisoner, say with number n1 . He then opens box n1 and repeats the
procedure, so whenever he opens a box B that doesn’t contain his own name, the
next box that he opens has the number of the prisoner whose name appears in box B.
What is the probability of success of this strategy? Suppose that box i contains
the name of the prisoner numbered .i /. Thus is a permutation of 1; 2; : : : ; 100.
The boxes opened by prisoner i are those containing the names of prisoners with
numbers .i /, 2 .i /, 3 .i /, etc. If k is the length of the cycle of containing i ,
then the prisoner will see his name after opening the kth box. This will happen
whenever k  50. Thus all prisoners see their names if and only if every cycle of
has length at most 50. If does  not
 have this property, then it has exactly one
cycle of length r > 50. There are 100 r ways to choose the elements of the cycle and
.r  1/Š ways to arrange them in a cycle. There are then .100  r/Š ways to arrange
the other elements of . Thus the number of permutations 2 S100 with a cycle of
length r > 50 is
!
100 100Š
.r  1/Š.100  r/Š D :
r r

(There are more clever ways to see this.) Hence the probability of success, i.e., the
probability that has no cycle of length more than 50, is

1 X 100Š X
100 100
1
1 D1 ;
100Š rD51 r rD51
r

as claimed. t
u

If we apply the above argument to 2n prisoners rather than 100, then we get a
success probability of

X2n
1 X2n
1 X1
n
1 D1 C :
rDnC1
r rD1
r rD1
r

From calculus we know that there is a constant  D 0:577215665    , known as

Euler’s constant, for which
!
Xn
1
lim  log n D :
n!1
rD1
r
12.2 Oddtown 189

It follows that as n ! 1, the success probability of the prisoners is

lim .1  log 2n C log n/ D 1  log 2 D 0:3068528194    :

n!1

It seems quite amazing that no matter how many prisoners there are, they can always
achieve a success probability of over 30 %!
NOTE. It can be shown that the above strategy is in fact optimal, i.e., no strategy
achieves a higher probability of success. The proof, however, is not so easy.

12.2 Oddtown

The village of Oddtown has a population of n people. Inhabitants of Oddtown like

to form clubs. Every club has an odd number of members, and every pair of clubs
share an even number of members (possibly none).
12.2 Theorem. There are at most n clubs.
Proof. Let k be the number of clubs. Define a matrix M D .Mij / over the two-
element field F2 as follows. The rows of M are indexed by the clubs Ci and the
columns by the inhabitants xj of Oddtown. Set
(
1; xj 2 Ci ;
Mij D
0; otherwise:

The matrix M is called the incidence matrix corresponding to the clubs and their
members.
In general, let S be a subset of Œn, and let S 2 Zn be the characteristic vector
of S , i.e., S D .a1 ; : : : ; an / where

1; i 2 S;
ai D
0; i 62 S:

If T is another subset of Œn, then the key observation is that the scalar (dot) product
of S and T is given by S  T D #.S \ T /. Hence if we now work over F2 , then

1; if #.S \ T / is odd;
S  T D (12.1)
0; if #.S \ T / is even:

Let A D MM t , a k  k matrix. By (12.1) and the assumption that every club

has an odd number of members, we see that main diagonal elements of A are 1.
Similarly the off-diagonal elements of A are 0, so A D Ik , the k  k identity
matrix. Hence rank .A/ D k.
190 12 Miscellaneous Gems

Recall that if B is a k m matrix and C is an m n matrix (over some field), then

rank .BC /  rank.B/ (as well as rank .BC /  rank .C /), since for any matrix D,
rank .D/ D dim image.D/. Hence, since M has n columns,

n  rank .M /  rank .MM t / D rank .A/ D k: t

u

While Theorem 12.2 can be proved without linear algebra, the proof is not easy.

12.3 Complete Bipartite Partitions of Kn

Figure 12.1 shows the six edges of the complete graph K4 partitioned (according to
the edge label) into the edge sets of the three complete bipartite graphs K3;1 , K2;1 ,
and K1;1 . Clearly we can extend this construction, achieving a partition of the edges
E.Kn / of Kn into the edge sets of n1 complete bipartite graphs. Specifically, let E1
be the set of edges incident to a fixed vertex v. Thus E1 is the edge set of a complete
bipartite graph Kn1;1 . Remove E1 from E.Kn / and proceed by induction, obtaining
a partition of E.Kn / into the edges of Kn1;1 , Kn2;1 ; : : :, K1;1 . The question thus
arises as to whether E.Kn / can be partitioned into fewer than n  1 edge sets of
complete bipartite graphs.
12.3 Theorem. If E.Kn / is the disjoint union of the edge sets of m complete
bipartite graphs, then m  n  1.

Proof. Let E.Kn / D E.B1 /[E.B     [E.B
1 /[  m / (disjoint union), where Bk is a
complete bipartite graph with vertex bipartition .Xk ; Yk / (so Xk \ Yk D ;). For
1  i  n, define an n  n matrix Ak by


1; i 2 Xk ; j 2 Yk ;
.Ak /ij D
0; otherwise:

3
1 2

Fig. 12.1 A decomposition 1 2

of the edges of K4 into three
complete bipartite graphs 1
12.4 The Nonuniform Fisher Inequality 191

P
All nonzero rows of Ak are equal, so rank Ak D 1. Let S D m kD1 Ak . For i ¤ j ,
exactly one of the 2m numbers .Ak /ij and .Ak /j i , 1  k  m, is equal to 1, since
every edge ij of Kn appears in one E.Bk / with either i 2 Xk and j 2 Yk or else
j 2 Xk and i 2 Yk . Hence
S C S t D J  I;

where as usual J is the n  n all 1’s matrix and I is the n  n identity matrix.
Claim. If T is any real matrix satisfying T C T t D J  I , then rank T  n  1.
Suppose to the contrary that rank T  n  2. Then T has (at least) two linearly
independent eigenvectors x; y such that T x D T y D 0 [why?]. Since J has rank
one, the space hx; yi spanned by x and y contains a nonzero vector z satisfying
J z D 0 [why?]. Then from T C T t D J  I and T z D 0 we get z D T t z. Take
the dot product with zt on the left. We get
jzj2 D zt T t z
D .zt T t z/t .since a 1  1 matrix is symmetric/
D zt T z .since in general .AB/t D B t At /
D 0 .since T z D 0/;
contradicting z ¤ 0. Hence the claim is proved, so in particular rank X  n1.
P But
in general rank .A C B/  rank A C rank B [why?]. Therefore from S D m kD1 Ak
and rank Ak D 1 we get rank S  m. It follows that m  n  1, completing the
proof. t
u

12.4 The Nonuniform Fisher Inequality

A balanced incomplete block design (BIBD) with parameters .v; k; ; r; b/ is a v-

element set X and a collection A of k-element subsets (blocks), with #A D b, such
that any two points x; y 2 X lie in exactly  blocks, and each point is in exactly r
blocks. We also assume that k < v, which is the reason for the word “incomplete.”
We can draw a BIBD as a bipartite graph with vertex bipartition .X; A/. There is an
edge from x 2 X to A 2 A if x 2 A. Thus the degree of each vertex x 2 X is r,
and the degree of each vertex A 2 A is k. It follows that vr D kb (the total number
of edges of the graph). We can also count the number of two-element sets of edges
  of A. On the one hand, since each vertex in A
that are incident to the same vertex
has degree k this number is b k2 . On the other hand, each pair of points in X are
  
mutually adjacent to  points in A, so we get  2v D b k2 . A little manipulation
v k 
shows that the two equalities vr D kb and  2 D b 2 are equivalent to
vr D kb; .v  1/ D r.k  1/;
the usual form in which they are written.
192 12 Miscellaneous Gems

Fisher showed in 1940 that b  v. This inequality was generalized by Bose

in 1949. The most convenient way to state Bose’s inequalities, known as the
nonuniform Fisher inequality, is to reverse the roles of points and blocks. Thus
consider the elements x of X to be sets whose elements are the blocks A 2 A that
contain them. In other words, we have a collection C1 ; : : : ; Cv of r-element sets
whose union contains b points x1 ; : : : ; xb . Each point is in exactly k of the sets.
Finally, #.Ci \ Cj / D  for all i ¤ j .
12.4 Theorem. Let C1 ; : : : ; Cv be distinct subsets of a b-element set X such that
for all i ¤ j we have #.Ci \ Cj / D  for some 1   < b (independent of i and
j ). Then v  b.

Proof. Case 1: some #Ci D . Then all other Cj ’s contain Ci and are disjoint
otherwise, so
v  „ƒ‚…
1 C b
„ƒ‚…  b:
from Ci from all Cj ¤Ci

Case 2: all #Ci > . Let i D #Ci   > 0. Let M be the incidence matrix of the
set system C1 ; : : : ; Cv , i.e., the rows of M correspond to the Ci ’s and the columns
to the elements x1 ; : : : ; xb of X , with

1; xj 2 Ci ;
M ij D
0; xj 62 Ci :

Let A D MM t . The hypotheses imply that A D J C G, where J as usual is the

all 1’s matrix (of size v) and G is the diagonal matrix diag.1; : : : ; v /.
Claim: rank .A/ D v (i.e., A is invertible). We would then have

v D rank .A/  rank .M /  b;

the last inequality because M has b columns.

As in the proof of Theorem 4.7, a real symmetric matrix B is positive
semidefinite if it has nonnegative eigenvalues. Equivalently, by basic linear algebra,
uBut  0 for all row vectors u of length v. Moreover B is positive definite (and so
has positive eigenvalues) if uBut > 0 for all u ¤ 0.
Now we easily compute that

u.J C G/ut D .u1 C    C uv /2 C 1 u21 C    C v u2v > 0

for all u ¤ 0. Thus A D J C G is positive definite and hence of full rank v. t

u
12.5 Odd Neighborhood Covers 193

12.5 Odd Neighborhood Covers

Consider an m  n grid graph. The case m D 3, n D 4 is shown in Fig. 12.2. At

each vertex are a turned on light bulb and also a switch that changes the state of its
bulb and those of its neighbors (adjacent vertices). Can all the lights be turned off?
This problem was open for many years until in 1989 Sutner, then a graduate
student, showed using automata theory that the answer is yes for any (finite) graph!
More explicitly, let G be a finite graph with a turned on light bulb at each vertex.
At each vertex is a switch that changes the state of that vertex and all its neighbors.
Then it is possible to turn off all the lights. We will give a modification of a simpler
proof due to Caro based on linear algebra.
Without loss of generality we may assume that G is simple. If v 2 V .G/, then
the neighborhood N.v/ of v is the set consisting of v and all vertices adjacent to v.
A little thought shows that we need to prove the following result.
12.5 Theorem. There exists a subset S  V D V .G/ such that #.S \ N.v// is odd
for all v 2 V . (It follows that switching at the vertices v 2 S turns all the lights off.)

Proof. Let V .G/ D fv1 ; : : : ; vp g. Let A be the adjacency matrix of G over the field
p
F2 , and let y D .1; 1; : : : ; 1/ 2 F2 . Write row.B/ for the row space of a matrix B.
p
Given S  V , let S D .a1 ; : : : ; ap / 2 F2 denote the characteristic (row) vector of
S , i.e.,

1; vi 2 S;
ai D
0; vi 62 S:

Note that switching at S turns all the lights off if and only if S .A C I / D y. Hence
we need to show that y 2 row.A C I / [why?].
Let us recall from linear algebra some standard facts about orthogonal subspaces.
Let K be a field, and for u; v 2 K n let u  v be the usual dot product (2.1) of u and v,
so u  v 2 K. If W is a subspace of K n , then define the orthogonal subspace W ? by

W ? D fu 2 K n W u  v D 0 for all v 2 W g:

(In Chap. 11 we discussed the case K D R.) Let d D dim W . Since W ? is the
set of solutions to d linearly independent homogeneous linear equations [why?], we
have

Fig. 12.2 The 3  4 grid

graph
194 12 Miscellaneous Gems

dim W C dim W ? D n: (12.2)

Note that by definition of ? we have W  .W ? /? . By (12.2) and the equation
obtained from it by replacing W with W ? , we get dim W D dim .W ? /? . Hence

.W ? /? D W: (12.3)

NOTE. Though irrelevant here, let us point out that if K  R then W \ W ? D f0g,
but that this fact need not hold in characteristic p ¤ 0. Over C we should define
u  v D u1 vN 1 C    C un vN n , where N denotes complex conjugation, in order to get the
most sensible theory.
Now by (12.3) the vector y D .1; 1; : : : ; 1/ (or any vector in Fn2 ) lies in the row
space of A C I if and only if it is orthogonal to every vector in row.A C I /? D
ker.ACI /. Thus we need to show that if .ACI /vt D 0, then vy D 0. Equivalently,
if yvt ¤ 0 then .A C I /vt ¤ 0. Note that (a) yvt ¤ 0 means that v has an odd
number of 1’s and (b) .A C I /vt is the sum of the rows of A C I indexed by the
positions of the 1’s in v. Thus we need to show that A C I does not have an odd
number of rows summing to 0.
Suppose that v1 ; : : : ; vk are vertices indexing rows of A summing to 0. Let H be
the subgraph induced by v1 ; : : : ; vk , i.e., H consists of the vertices v1 ; : : : ; vk and
all edges of G between two of these vertices. Let bij be the .i; j /-entry of A C I .
P
Since kiD1 bij D 0 for 1  j  n and each bi i D 1, it follows that every vertex of
H has odd degree. Since [why?]
X
deg v D 2  #E.H /;
v2V .H /

we have that k D #V .H / is even, completing the proof. t

u

12.6 Circulant Hadamard Matrices

For our next “gem of algebraic combinatorics,” we will provide some variety by
leaving the realm of linear algebra and looking at some simple algebraic number
theory.
An n  n matrix H is a Hadamard matrix if its entries are ˙1 and its rows are
orthogonal. Equivalently, its entries are ˙1 and HH t D nI . In particular [why?],

det H D ˙nn=2 : (12.4)

It is easy to see that if H is an nn Hadamard matrix then n D 1, n D 2, or n D 4m

for some integer m  1. (See Exercise 18.) It is conjectured that the converse is true,
i.e., for every such n there exists an n  n Hadamard matrix.
12.6 Circulant Hadamard Matrices 195

An n  n matrix A D .bij / is a circulant or circulant matrix if it has the form

bij D ai j for some a0 ; a1 ; : : : ; an1 , where the subscript i  j is taken modulo n.
For instance,
2 3
a b c d
6d a b c 7
AD6 4c d a b5
7

b c d a
is a circulant. Let A D .ai j / be an n  n circulant, and let  D e 2 i=n , a primitive
nth root of unity. It is straightforward to compute that for 0  j < n the column
vector Œ1;  j ;  2j ; : : : ;  .n1/j t is an eigenvector of A with eigenvalue a0 C  j a1 C
 2j a2 C    C  .n1/j an1 . Hence

Y
n1
det A D .a0 C  j a1 C  2j a2 C    C  .n1/j an1 /: (12.5)
j D0

Note that the matrix 2 3

1 1 1 1
6 1 1 1 1 7
6 7
4 1 1 1 1 5
1 1 1 1
is both a Hadamard matrix and a circulant.
Conjecture. Let H be an n  n circulant Hadamard matrix. Then n D 1 or n D 4.
The first significant work on this conjecture is due to Turyn. He showed that
there does not exist a circulant Hadamard matrix of order 8m, and he also excluded
certain other orders of the form 4.2m C 1/. Turyn’s proofs use the machinery of
algebraic number theory. Here we will give a proof for the special case n D 2k ,
k  3, where the algebraic number theory can be “dumbed down” to elementary
commutative algebra and field theory. (Only in Theorem 12.14 do we use a little
Galois theory, which can be avoided with a bit more work.) It would be interesting
to find similar proofs for other values of n.
12.6 Theorem. There does not exist a circulant Hadamard matrix H of order 2k ,
k  3.
NOTE. It is curious that the numbers 2k (k  2) are the easiest multiples of 4 to
show are not the orders of circulant Hadamard matrices, while on the other hand the
numbers 2k (k  1) are the easiest numbers to show are the orders of Hadamard
matrices. To see that 2k is the order of a Hadamard matrix H , first note that the case
k D 1 is trivial. It is routine to show that if H1 is a Hadamard matrix of order a and
H2 is a Hadamard matrix of order b, then the tensor (or Kronecker) product A ˝ B
is a Hadamard matrix of order ab. It follows that there exists a Hadamard matrix of
order 2k , k  1.
196 12 Miscellaneous Gems

k
From now on we assume n D 2k and  D e 2 i=2 . Clearly  is a zero of the
k1
polynomial pk .x/ D x 2 C 1. We will be working in the ring ZŒ, the smallest
subring of C containing Z and . Write Q./ for the quotient field of ZŒ, i.e., the
field obtained by adjoining  to Q.
12.7 Lemma. The polynomial pk .x/ is irreducible over Q.

Proof. If pk .x/ is reducible then so is pk .x C 1/. A standard fact about polynomial

factorization is Gauss’ lemma, namely, an integral polynomial that factors over Q
also factors over Z. If p.x/; q.x/ 2 ZŒx, write p.x/  q.x/ .mod 2/ to mean that
the coefficients of p.x/  q.x/ are even. Now [why?]
k1 k1
pk .x C 1/  .x C 1/2 C 1  x2 .mod 2/:

Hence any factorization of pk .x C 1/ over Z into two factors of degree at least one
has the form pk .x C 1/ D .x r C 2a/.x s C 2b/, where r C s D 2k1 and a; b are
polynomials of degrees less than r and s, respectively. Hence the constant term of
pk .x C 1/ is divisible by 4, a contradiction. t
u

It follows by elementary field theory that every element u 2 ZΠcan be uniquely
written in the form
u D b0 C b1  C b2  2 C    C bn=21  n=21 ; bi 2 Z:
The basis for our proof of Theorem 12.6 is the two different ways to compute
det H given by (12.4) and (12.5), yielding the formula
Y
n1
k1
.a0 C  j a1 C  2j a2 C    C  .n1/j an1 / D ˙nn=2 D ˙2k2 : (12.6)
j D0
k1
Thus we have a factorization in ZΠof 2k2 . Algebraic number theory is
concerned with factorization of algebraic integers (and ideals) in algebraic number
fields, so we have a vast amount of machinery available to show that no factorization
(12.6) is possible (under the assumption that each aj D ˙1). Compare Kummer’s
famous approach toward Fermat’s Last Theorem (which led to his creation of
algebraic
Q number theory), in which he considered the equation x n C y n D zn as
 n D1 .x C y/ D z .
n

We are continuing to assume that H D .aj i / is an n  n circulant Hadamard

matrix. We will denote the eigenvalues of H by

j D a0 C a1  j C a2  2j C    C an1  .n1/j :

12.8 Lemma. For 0  j  n  1 we have

p
jj j D n:
12.6 Circulant Hadamard Matrices 197

Thus p
all the factors appearing on the left-hand side of (12.6) have absolute
value n.
First proof (naive). Let Hi denote the i th row of H , let  denote the usual dot
product, and let N denote complex conjugation. Then

j Nj D .a0 C a1  j C    C an1  .n1/j /.a0 C a1  j C    C an1  .n1/j /

D H1  H1 C .H1  H2 / j C .H1  H3 / 2j C    C .H1  Hn / .n1/j :

By the Hadamard property we have H1  H1 D n, while H1  Hk D 0 for 2  k  n,

and the proof follows. u
t
Second proof (algebraic). The matrix p1n H is a real orthogonal matrix. By linear
algebra, all its eigenvalues
p have absolute value 1. Hence all eigenvalues j of H
have absolute value n. t
u
12.9 Lemma. We have
2 D .1  /n=2 u; (12.7)

where u is a unit in ZŒ.

Proof. Put x D 1 in
Y
n1
x n=2 C 1 D .x   j /
j D0
j odd
Q
to get 2 D j .1   j /. Since

1   j D .1  /.1 C  C    C  j 1 /;

it suffices to show that 1CC  C j 1 is a unit when j is odd. Let j jN  1 .mod n/.
Then

1
.1 C  C    C  j 1 /1 D
1  j
1  . j /jN
D 2 ZŒ;
1  j

as desired. t
u

12.10 Lemma. We have ZŒ=.1  / Š F2 .

Proof. Let R D ZŒ=.1  /. The integer 2 is not a unit in ZŒ, e.g., because 1=2
is not an algebraic integer (the zero of a monic polynomial f .x/ 2 ZŒx). Thus by
Lemma 12.9, 1   is also not a unit. Hence R ¤ 0.
198 12 Miscellaneous Gems

For all j we have  j D 1 in R since  D 1 in R. Hence all elements of R can be

written as ordinary integers m. But 0 D 2 in R by Lemma 12.9, so the only elements
of R are 0 and 1. t
u

12.11 Lemma. For all 0  j  n  1 there is an integer hj  0 such that

a0 C a1  j C a2  2j C    C an1  .n1/j D vj .1  /hj ;

where vj is a unit in ZŒ.

Proof. Since 2 is a multiple of 1   by Lemma 12.9, we have by (12.6) that

Y
n1
.a0 C a1  j C a2  2j C    C an1  .n1/j / D 0
j D0

in ZŒ=.1  /. Since ZŒ=.1  / is an integral domain by Lemma 12.10, some

factor a0 C a1  j C    C an1  .n1/j is divisible by 1  . Divide this factor and the
right-hand side of (12.6) by 1   and iterate the procedure. We continue to divide a
factor of the left-hand side and the right-hand side by 1   until the right-hand side
becomes the unit u. Hence each factor of the original product has the form v.1 /h ,
where v is a unit. t
u

12.12 Corollary. Either 0 =1 2 ZŒ or 1 =0 2 ZŒ. (In fact, both 0 =1 2 ZŒ
and 1 =0 2 ZŒ, as will soon become apparent, but we don’t need this fact here.)

Proof. By the previous lemma, each j has the form vj .1  /hj . If h0  h1 then
0 =1 2 ZŒ; otherwise 1 =0 2 ZŒ. t
u

We now need to appeal to a result of Kronecker on elements of ZΠof absolute

value one. For completeness we include a proof of this result, beginning with a
lemma. Recall that if  is an algebraic number (the zero of an irreducible polynomial
f .x/ 2 QŒx), then a conjugate of  is any zero of f .x/.
12.13 Lemma. Let  be an algebraic integer such that  and all its conjugates have
absolute value one. Then  is a root of unity.
Proof. Suppose the contrary. Let deg  D d , i.e., ŒQ./ W Q WD dimQ Q./Dd .
Now ,  2 ,  3 ; : : : are all distinct and hence infinitely many of them have the
property that no two are conjugate. Each  j 2 ZΠand so is the root of a monic
integral polynomial of degree at most d , since the set of algebraic integers forms a
ring. If 1 ; 2 ; : : : ; d are the conjugates of , then all the conjugates of  j are among
j j j
1 , 2 ; : : : ; d . Hence each  j satisfies the hypothesis that all its conjugates have
absolute value 1 (and  j is an algebraic integer). Thus   the rth elementary symmetric
function er in  j and its conjugates has at most dr terms, each of absolute value
 
1, so jer j  dr . Moreover, er 2 Z since  j is an algebraic integer. It follows
that there are only finitely many possible polynomials that can be an irreducible
12.6 Circulant Hadamard Matrices 199

monic polynomial with a zero equal to some  j , contradicting the fact that there are
infinitely many  j ’s for which no two are conjugate. t
u

12.14 Theorem (Kronecker). Let  be any root of unity and ˛ 2 ZŒ with j˛j D 1.
Then ˛ is a root of unity.

Proof. Since ˛ 2 ZŒ, we see that ˛ is an algebraic integer. We use the basic fact
from Galois theory that the Galois group of the extension field Q./=Q is abelian.
Let ˇ be a conjugate of ˛, so ˇ D w.˛/ for some automorphism w of Q./. Apply
w to the equation ˛ ˛N D 1. Since complex conjugation is an automorphism of Q./
it commutes with w, so we obtain ˇ ˇN D 1. Hence all the conjugates of ˛ have
absolute value one, so ˛ is a root of unity by the previous lemma. t
u

For our next result, we need the standard algebraic fact that if  D e 2 i=m ,
a primitive mth root of unity, then ŒQ./ W Q D .m/ (the Euler -function).
Equivalently, the unique monic polynomial ˆm .x/ whose zeros are the primitive
mth roots of unity is irreducible. This polynomial is by definition given by
X
ˆm .x/ D .x   j /
1j m
gcd.j;m/D1

and is called a cyclotomic polynomial. Lemma 12.7 is the case m D n .D 2k /.

12.15 Lemma. If  2 ZΠis a root of unity, then  D  r for some r 2 Z.
Proof. Suppose not. It is easy to see that then either  is a primitive 2m th root of
unity for some m > k, or else  s is a primitive pth root of unity for some odd prime
p and some s  1. In the former case

ŒQ./ W Q D .2m / D 2m1 > 2k1 D .2k / D ŒQ./ W Q;

a contradiction. In the latter case,  s  is a primitive pn-th root of unity, so

ŒQ. s / W Q D .pn/ D .p  1/.n/ > .n/ D ŒQ./ W Q;

again a contradiction. t
u

We now have all the ingredients to complete the proof of Theorem 12.6. Note
that we have yet to use the hypothesis that ai D ˙1. By Lemma 12.8 we have

j1 =0 j D j0 =1 j D 1:

Hence by Corollary 12.12, Theorem 12.14, and Lemma 12.15 we have 0 D  r 1

for some r. Expand 0 and  r 1 uniquely as integer linear combinations of
n
1; ;  2 ; : : : ;  2 1 :
200 12 Miscellaneous Gems

p
0 D a0 C a1 C    C an1 D ˙ n;

 r 1 D  r ..a0  an=2 / C .a1  an=2C1 / C    /

D .ar  an=2Cr / C .arC1  an=2CrC1 / C    :
p
Equating coefficients of  0 yields ˙ n D ar  an=2Cr . Since each ai D ˙1, we
must have n  4, completing the proof. u
t

12.7 P-Recursive Functions

A function f W N ! C is called polynomially recursive, or P -recursive for short, if

there exist polynomials P0 .n/; : : : ; Pd .n/ 2 CŒn, with Pd .n/ ¤ 0, such that

Pd .n/f .n C d / C Pd 1 .n/f .n C d  1/ C    C P0 .n/f .n/ D 0 (12.8)

for all n  0.
For instance, the Fibonacci sequence Fn is P -recursive since FnC2  FnC1 
Fn D0 for all n  0. Here d D 2 and P2 .n/ D 1, P1 .n/ D P0 .n/ D 1. This
situation is quite special since the polynomials Pi .n/ are constants. Another P -
recursive function is f .n/ D nŠ, since f .n C 1/  .n C 1/f .n/ D 0 for all n  0.
Let P denote the set of all P -recursive functions f W N ! C. Our goal in this
section is to prove that P is a C-algebra, that is, for any f; g 2 P and ˛; ˇ 2 C, we
have
˛f C ˇg 2 P; fg 2 P;
with obvious compatibility properties such as .˛f /g D f .˛g/ D ˛.fg/. There is
one technical problem that needs to be dealt with before proceeding to the proof.
We would like to conclude from (12.8) that

1
f .n C d / D  .Pd 1 .n/f .n C d  1/ C    C P0 .n/f .n//: (12.9)
Pd .n/

This formula, however, is problematical when Pd .n/ D 0. This can happen only
for finitely many n, so (12.9) is valid for n sufficiently large. Thus we want to deal
with functions f .n/ only for n sufficiently large. To this end, define f
g if
f .n/ D g.n/ for all but finitely many n. Clearly
is an equivalence relation;
the equivalence classes are called germs at 1 of functions f W N ! C. The germ
containing f is denoted Œf . Write G for the set of all germs.
12.16 Lemma. (a) If f is P -recursive and f
g, then g is P -recursive. In
other words, the property of P -recursiveness is compatible with the equivalence
relation
.
12.7 P -Recursive Functions 201

(b) Write CN for the complex vector space of all functions f W N ! C. Let ˛; ˇ 2 C
and f1 ; f2 ; g1 ; g2 2 CN . If f1
f2 and g1
g2 , then ˛f1 C ˇg1
˛f2 C ˇg2
and f1 g1
f2 g2 . In other words, linear combinations and multiplication
are compatible with the equivalence relation
. Thus the set G has the
structure of an C-algebra, i.e., a complex vector space and a ring (with obvious
compatibility properties such as .˛f /g D f .˛g/ D ˛.fg/).
Proof. (a) Suppose that f .n/ D g.n/ for Q all n > n0 . Let (12.8) be the recurrence
satisfied by f . Multiply both sides by nj 0D0 .n  j /. We then get a recurrence
relation satisfied by g. Hence g is P -recursive.
(b) This is clear. t
u

Let CŒn denote the ring of complex polynomials in n. Let C.n/ denote the
quotient field of CŒn, i.e., the field of all rational functions P .n/=Q.n/, where
P; Q 2 CŒn. Suppose that f 2 CN and R 2 C.n/. Then f .n/R.n/ is defined
for n sufficiently large (i.e., when the denominator of R.n/ is nonzero). Thus we
can define the germ Œf .n/R.n/ 2 G to be the germ of any function that agrees
with f .n/R.n/ for n sufficiently large. It is easy to see that this definition of scalar
multiplication makes G into a vector space over the field C.n/. We now come to the
key characterization of P -recursive functions (or their germs).
12.17 Lemma. A function f 2 CN is P -recursive if and only if the vector space
Vf over C.n/ spanned by the germs Œf .n/, Œf .n C 1/, Œf .n C 2/; : : : is finite-
dimensional.

Proof. Suppose that f .n/ satisfies (12.8). Let Vf0 be the vector space over C.n/
spanned by Œf .n/, Œf .n C 1/, Œf .n C 2/; : : : ; Œf .n C d  1/, so dimC.n/ Vf0  d .
Equation (12.9) shows that Œf .nCd / 2 Vf0 . Substitute nC1 for n in (12.9). We get
that Œf .nCd C1/ is in the span (over C.n/) of Œf .nC1/, Œf .nC2/; : : : ; Œf .nCd /.
Since these d germs are all in Vf0 , we get that Œf .n C d C 1/ 2 Vf0 . Continuing
in this way, we get by induction on k that f .n C d C k/ 2 Vf0 for all k  0, so
Vf0 D Vf . Thus Vf is finite-dimensional.
Conversely, assume that dimC.n/ Vf < 1. Then for some d , the germs Œf .n/,
Œf .n C 1/; : : : ; Œf .n C d / are linearly dependent over C.n/. Write down this linear
dependence relation and clear denominators to get a recurrence (12.8) satisfied by f .
Hence f is P -recursive. t
u

We now have all the ingredients necessary for the main result of this section.
12.18 Theorem. Let f; g 2 P and ˛; ˇ 2 C. Then:
(a) ˛f C ˇg 2 P
(b) fg 2 P

Proof. (a) By Lemma 12.17 it suffices to show that dim V˛f Cˇg < 1. Now
by definition, the sum Vf C Vg is the vector space consisting of all linear
202 12 Miscellaneous Gems

combinations  Œu C ıŒv, where Œu 2 Vf and Œv 2 Vg and ; ı 2 C.n/.

In particular, Vf C Vg contains all the germs ˛Œf .n C k/ C ˇŒg.n C k/ D
Œ˛f .n C k/ C ˇg.n C k/, k  0. Hence

V˛f Cˇg  Vf C Vg :

Now if V and W are subspaces of some vector space, then V C W is spanned

by the union of a basis for V and basis for W . In particular, if V and W are
finite-dimensional, then dim.V C W /  dim V C dim W . Hence

dim V˛f Cˇg  dim.Vf C Vg /  dim Vf C dim Vg < 1;

as was to be proved.
(b) The proof is analogous to (a), except that instead of the sum V C W we need
the tensor product V ˝K W over the field K. Recall from linear algebra that
V ˝K W may be thought of (somewhat naively) as the vector space spanned by
all symbols v ˝ w, where v 2 V and w 2 W , subject to the conditions

.v1 C v2 / ˝ w D v1 ˝ w C v2 ˝ w;
v ˝ .w1 C w2 / D v ˝ w1 C v ˝ w2 ;
˛v ˝ w D v ˝ ˛w D ˛.v ˝ w/;

where ˛ is a scalar. A standard and simple consequence is that if V has the

basis fv1 ; : : : ; vm g and W has the basis fw1 ; : : : ; wn g, then V ˝K W has the
basis vi ˝ wj , for 1  i  m and 1  j  n. In particular,

dim.V ˝K W / D .dim V /.dim W /:

Recall the basic “universality” property of the tensor product V ˝ W D V ˝K

W : there is a bilinear map  W V  W ! V ˝ W such that for any vector space
Y and bilinear map ˆW V  W ! Y , there is a unique linear map 'W V ˝ W !
Y for which ˆ D ' . In particular, there is a unique linear transformation
'W Vf ˝C.n/ Vg ! G satisfying

'
Œf .n C i / ˝ gŒ.n C j / 7! Œf .n C i /g.n C j /:

The image of ' contains all germs Œf .n C i /g.n C i /, so Vfg  image.'/.
Thus
dim Vfg  dim.Vf ˝C.n/ Vg / D .dim Vf /.dim Vg / < 1;
and the proof follows.
t
u
Exercises for Chap. 12 203

Notes for Chap. 12

The 100 prisoners problem was first considered by Miltersen. It appeared in a paper
with Gál [43]. Further information on the history of this problem, together with a
proof of optimality of the prisoners’ strategy, is given by Curtin and Warshauer [21].
The Oddtown theorem is due to Berlekamp [7]. Theorem 12.3 on decomposing
Kn into complete bipartite subgraphs is due to Graham and Pollak [46, 47]. For
Fisher’s original proof of the inequality v  b for BIBD’s and Bose’s nonuniform
generalization, see [34] and [11]. Sutner’s original proof of the odd neighborhood
theorem (Theorem 12.5) appears in [110], while the simpler proof of Caro may
be found in [16]. The odd neighborhood problem is also known as the Lights
Out Puzzle. For a host of other applications of linear algebra along the lines of
Sects. 12.2–12.5, see the unpublished manuscript [4] of Babai and Frankl and the
book [76] of Matoušek.
The circulant Hadamard matrix conjecture was first mentioned in print by Ryser
[95, p. 134], though its precise origin is obscure. The work of Turyn mentioned
in the text appears in [114, 115]. Some more recent progress is due to Leung and
Schmidt [68].
While P -recursive functions and their cousins the D-finite series of Exercise 25
were known to nineteenth century analysts, the first systematic treatment of them
did not appear until the paper of Stanley [102] in 1980, which includes a statement
and proof of Theorem 12.18. For an exposition, see Stanley [108, Sect. 6.4].

Exercises for Chap. 12

1. Suppose that we have 2n prisoners and the same evil warden as in Sect. 12.1.
Let 0 < ˛ < 1. Now the prisoners open 2˛n of the boxes (more precisely, the
closest integer to 2˛n). For what value of ˛ will the strategy used in the proof
of Theorem 12.1 yield a 50 % chance of success in the limit as n ! 1?
2. Suppose that we have the same 100 prisoners and evil warden as in Sect. 12.1.
This time, however, each prisoner must open 99 boxes. If any prisoner sees his
or her name, then they are all killed. Find the best strategy for the prisoners and
the resulting probability p of success. Note that 10200  p  102 , the upper
bound because the first prisoner has a success probability of 1=100. (Unlike the
situation in Sect. 12.1, once the best strategy is found for the present problem
the proof of optimality is easy.)
3. (a) This time the evil warden puts a red hat or a blue hat on the head of each
of the 100 prisoners. Each prisoner sees all the hats except for his own.
The prisoners simultaneously guess the color of their hat. If any prisoner
guesses wrong, then all are killed. What strategy minimizes the probability
that all are killed?
204 12 Miscellaneous Gems

(b) Now the prisoners have hats as before, but only the prisoners who guess
wrong are killed. What is the largest integer m such that there is some
strategy guaranteeing that at least m prisoners survive?
4. (*) Our poor 100 prisoners have distinct real numbers written on their fore-
heads. They can see every number but their own. They each choose (indepen-
dently, without communication) a red or blue hat and put it on their heads. The
warden lines them up in increasing order of the numbers on their foreheads. If
any two consecutive prisoners have the same color hat, then all are killed. What
is the best strategy for success?
5. (a) (*) Suppose that n people live in Reverse Oddtown. Every club contains an
even number of persons, and any two clubs share an odd number of persons.
Show that no more than n clubs can be formed.
(b) (rather difficult) Show that if n is even, then at most n  1 clubs can be
formed.
6. (a) Suppose that n people live in Eventown. Every club contains an even
number of persons, every two clubs share an even number of persons, and
no two clubs have identical membership. Show that the maximum number
of clubs is 2bn=2c .
(b) (rather difficult) Suppose that fewer than 2bn=2c clubs have been formed
using the Eventown rules of (a). Show that another club can be formed
without breaking the rules.
7. (Bipartite Oddtown) A town of n citizens has m red clubs R1 ; : : : ; Rm and m
blue clubs B1 ; : : : ; Bm . Assume that #.Ri \ Bi / is odd for every i and that
#.Ri \ Bj / is even for every i ¤ j . Prove that m  n.
8. Triptown has n persons and some clubs. Any two distinct clubs share a number
of members that is a multiple of 3. Let j be the number of clubs C for which
#C is not a multiple of 3. Show that j  n.
9. Strangetown has n people and k clubs C1 ; : : : ; Ck . Each club has an even
number of members, and any two clubs have an even number of members in
common, with the following exception: Ci and CkC1i have an odd number of
members in common for 1  i  k. (If k D 2m C 1 and i D m C 1, then this
means that club CmC1 has an odd number of members.) Show that there are at
most n clubs.
10. Weirdtown has n people and k clubs C1 ; : : : ; Ck . Each club has an even number
of members, and any two clubs have an even number of members in common,
with the following exception: if 1  i  k  1, then Ci and Ci C1 have an odd
number of members in common. As a function of n, what is the largest possible
value of k?
11. (a) An n  n real matrix is skew-symmetric if At D A. Let A be such a
matrix with n odd. Show that det A D 0. (This is a standard result from
linear algebra.)
(b) Let G be a simple graph with an odd number of vertices. The deleted
neighborhood N 0 .v/ of a vertex v is the set of all vertices adjacent to
v. Show that there is a nonempty subset S of the vertices such that
S intersects every deleted neighborhood N 0 .v/ in an even number of
elements.
Exercises for Chap. 12 205

12. (*) Let Mn denote the vector space of all real n  n matrices, so dim Mn D n2 .
Let V be a subspace of Mnsuch that every eigenvalue of every matrix A 2 V
is real. Show that dim V  nC1 2
.
13. Let the edge set E.Kn / of the complete graph Kn be a union of the edge sets of
complete bipartite graphs B1 ; : : : ; Bm such that every edge of Kn is covered an
odd number of times. Show that m  .n  1/=2. (The minimum value of m is
not known.)
14. A complete tripartite graph with vertex tripartition .X1 ; X2 ; X3 / is the graph
on the disjoint vertex sets Xi with an edge between any two vertices not in
the same set Xi . (We allow one of the Xi to be empty, so for instance K2 is a
complete tripartite graph.) Thus if #Xi D pi then the complete tripartite graph
has p1 p2 C p1 p3 C p2 p3 edges. Suppose that the edge set E.Kn / is partitioned
into m disjoint edge sets of complete tripartite graphs. What is the minimum
value of m?
15. (*) Let A1 ; : : : ; An be distinct subsets of an n-set X . Give a linear algebra proof
that for some x 2 X , all the sets Ai  x (short for Ai  fxg) are distinct. (There
is a fairly simple combinatorial proof, but that is not what is asked for.) NOTE
ON NOTATION . Ai  x D Ai if x 62 Ai .
16. Show that the number of “switching sets” S in Theorem 12.5 has the form 2n
for some n  0.
17. (a) Let G be a simple graph with p vertices such that exactly 2p1 subsets of
the vertices are switching sets, i.e., they turn off all the light bulbs in the
scenario of Sect. 12.5. Show that G is a complete graph Kp . Give a proof
based on linear algebra.
(b) Describe the 2p1 switching sets for Kp .
(c) (more difficult) Same as above, but with exactly 2p2 switching sets. Show
that G is a disjoint union of two complete graphs.
18. (*) Show that a Hadamard matrix H has order 1, 2, or n D 4m for some integer
m  1.
19. For what values of n do there exist n C 1 vertices of an n-dimensional cube
such that any two of them are the same distance apart? For instance, it’s clearly
impossible for n D 2, while for n D 3 the vertices can be 000, 110, 101, 011.
Your answer should involve Hadamard matrices.
20. (a) Show that if H is an n  n Hadamard matrix all of whose rows have the
same number of 1’s, then n is a square.
(b) Show also that all columns of H have the same number of 1’s.
21. (*) Clearly 2n and nŠ are P -recursive functions, so by Theorem 12.18 f .n/ D
2n C nŠ is also P -recursive. Find a recurrence of the form (12.8) satisfied by
f .n/.
P  3
22. (difficult) Let f .n/ D nkD0 nk . Show that

.nC2/2 f .nC2/.7n2 C21nC16/f .nC1/8.nC1/2 f .n/ D 0; n  0:

206 12 Miscellaneous Gems

23. (*) (difficult) Let f .n/ be the number of paths from .0; 0/ to .n; n/, where
each step in the path is .1; 0/, .0; 1/, or .1; 1/. For instance, f .1; 1/ D 3,
corresponding to the paths (where we abbreviate .1; 0/ as 10, etc.) 00 ! 10 !
11, 00 ! 01 ! 11, and 00 ! 11. Show that

.n C 2/f .n C 2/  3.2n C 3/f .n C 1/ C .n C 1/f .n/ D 0; n  0:

24. (a) Let ˛1 ; : : : ; ˛k be distinct nonzero complex numbers, and let Q1 .n/, : : : ;
Qk .n/ be distinct nonzero complex polynomials. Define

f .n/ D Q1 .n/˛1n C Q2 .n/˛2n C    C Qk .n/˛kn ; n  0:

Show that f .n/ is P -recursive.

(b) (difficult) Show that the least degree d of a recurrence (12.8) satisfied by
f .n/ is equal to k. P
25. (a) Let CŒŒx denote the ring of all power series n0 an x over C. It
n

is easyPto see that CŒŒx is an integral domain. A Laurent series is a

series n2Z bn x n , i.e., any integer exponents are allowed. Show that the
P of CŒŒx, denoted C..x//, consists of all Laurent series of
quotient field
the form nn0 bn x n for some n0 2 Z, i.e., all Laurent series with finitely
many negative exponents. Equivalently, C..x// is obtained from CŒŒx by
inverting the single element x. Show also that C..x// contains the field
C.x/ of all rational functions P .x/=Q.x/, where P; Q 2 CŒx, in the sense
that there is a Laurent series F .x/ 2 C..x// satisfying Q.x/F .x/ D P .x/.
(b) A Laurent series y 2 C..x// is called D-finite (short for differentiably
finite) if there exist polynomials p0 .x/; : : : ; pm .x/, not all 0, such that

pd .x/y .d / C    C p1 .x/y 0 C p0 .x/y D 0;

where y .d / denotes
P the d th derivative of y with respect to x. Show that a
power series n0 f .n/x n is D-finite if and only if the function f .n/ is
P -recursive.
(c) Show that y 2 C..x// is D-finite if and only if the vector space over C.x/
spanned by y; y 0 ; y 00 ; : : : is finite-dimensional (whence the terminology
“D-finite”).
(d) Show that the set D of D-finite Laurent series f 2 C..x// forms a
subalgebra of C..x//, i.e., D is closed under complex linear combinations
and under product.
(e) (more difficult) Show that D is not a subfield of C..x//.
26. (*) A Laurent series y 2 C..x// is called algebraic if there exist polynomials
p0 .x/, p1 .x/; : : : ; pd .x/ 2 CŒx, not all 0, such that

pd .x/y d C pd 1 .x/y d 1 C    C p1 .x/y C p0 .x/ D 0: (12.10)

Show that an algebraic series y is D-finite.

Exercises for Chap. 12 207

27. (very difficult) Show that a nonzero Laurent series f .x/ 2 C..x// and its
reciprocal 1=f .x/ are both D-finite if andPonly if f 0 .x/=f .x/ is algebraic.
28. (a) (difficult) Suppose that F .x; y/ D m n
m;n0 amn x y is a power series
in two variables with complex coefficients amn that represents a ratio-
nal function. In other words, there are polynomials P .x; y/; Q.x; y/ 2
CŒx; y such that Q.x; y/F .x; y/ D P .x; y/. Show that the power series
P n
n0 ann x , called the diagonal of F .x; y/, is algebraic.
(b) (difficult) Let

1 X .k C m C n/Š
F .x; y; z/ D D x k y m zn :
1xy z kŠ mŠ nŠ
k;m;n0

P
Show that the diagonal series n0 .3n/Š
nŠ3
x n is not algebraic.
(c) (very difficult) Show that the diagonal of any rational function over C in
finitely many variables is D-finite.
Hints for Some Exercises

Chapter 1
1.5 Consider A.Hn /2 and use Exercise 3.
1.6 (a) First count the number of sequences Vi0 ; Vi1 ; : : : ; Vi` for which there exists
a closed walk with vertices v0 ; v1 ; : : : ; v` Dv0 (in that order) such that vj 2Vij .
1.11 Consider the rank of A./ and also consider A./2 . The answer is very
simple and does not involve irrational numbers.
1.12 (b) Consider A.G/2 .
Chapter 2
2.2 See Exercise 9 in Chap. 9.
2.5 (c) Mimic the proof for the graph Cn , using the definition
X
hu ; v i D u .w/v .w/;
w2Zn

where an overhead bar denotes complex conjugation.

Chapter 3
3.4 You may find Example 3.1 useful.
3.7 It is easier not to use linear algebra.
3.8 See previous hint.
3.10 First show (easy) that if we start at a vertex v and take n steps (using our
random walk model), then the probability that we traverse a fixed closed walk
W is equal to the probability that we traverse W in reverse order.
3.12 See hint for Exercise 7.

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 209
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
210 Hints for Some Exercises

Chapter 4
4.4 (b) One way to do this is to count in two ways the number of k-tuples
.v1 ; : : : ; vk / of linearly independent elements from Fnq : (1) first choose v1 , then
v2 , etc., and (2) first choose the subspace W spanned by v1 ; : : : ; vk , and then
choose v1 , v2 , etc.
4.4 (c) The easiest way is to use (b).
Chapter 5
5.5 (a) Show that Nn Š Bn =G for asuitable
 group G.
5.9 (a) Use Corollary 2.4 with n D p2 .
5.13 Use Exercise 12.
Chapter 6
6.2 (b) Not really a hint, but the result is equivalent [why?] to the case r D m,
s D n, t D 2, and x D 1 of Exercise 34 in Chap. 8.
6.3 Consider  D .8; 8; 4; 4/.
6.5 First consider the case where S has  elements equal to 0 (so  D 0 or 1), 
elements that are negative, and elements that are positive, so  C  C D
2m C 1.
Chapter 7
7.16 (a) Use Pólya’s theorem.
Chapter 8
8.3 Encode a maximal chain by an object that we already know how to enumerate.
8.7 Partially order by diagram inclusion the set of all partitions whose diagrams
can be covered by nonoverlapping dominos, thereby obtaining a subposet Y2
of Young’s lattice Y . Show that Y2 Š Y  Y .
8.14 Use induction on n. P
8.17 (a) One way to do this is to use the generating function n0 ZSn .z1 ; z2 ; : : : /
x n for the cycle indicator of Sn (Theorem 7.13). Another method is to find
a recurrence for B.n C 1/ in terms of B.0/; : : : ; B.n/ and then convert this
recurrence into a generating function
8.18 Consider the generating function

X t k qn
G.q; t/ D .n ! n C k ! n/
.kŠ/2
k;n0

and use (8.25).

8.20 (b) Consider the square of the adjacency matrix of Yj 1;j .
8.24 Use Exercise 14.
Hints for Some Exercises 211

Chapter 9
9.1 There is a simple proof based on the formula .Kp / D p p2 , avoiding the
Matrix-Tree Theorem.
9.2 (c) Use the fact that the rows of L sum to 0 and compute the trace of L.
9.5 (b) Use Exercise 3 in Chap. 1.
9.6 (a) For the most elegant proof, use the fact that commuting p  p matrices
A and B can be simultaneously triangularized, i.e., there exists an invertible
matrix X such that both XAX 1 and XBX 1 are upper triangular.
9.6 (d) Use Exercise 8(a).
9.7 Let G  be the full dual graph of G, i.e., the vertices of G  are the faces of G,
including the outside face. For every edge e of G separating two faces R and S
of G, there is an edge e  of G  connecting the vertices R and S . Thus G  will
have some multiple edges and #E.G/ D #E.G  /. First show combinatorially
that .G/ D .G  /. (See Corollary 11.19.)
9.10 (a) The laplacian matrixL D L.G/ acts on the space RV .G/, the real vector
space with basis V .G/. Consider the subspace W of RV .G/ spanned by the
elements v C '.v/, v 2 V .G/.
9.11 (a) Let s.n; q; r/ be the numberof n  n symmetric matrices of rank r over Fq .
Find a recurrence satisfied by s.n; q; r/ and verify that this recurrence is
satisfied by
8 t 1
ˆ
ˆ Y q 2i Y
2t
ˆ
ˆ  .q ni  1/; 0  r D 2t  n;
< q 2i  1
i D1 i D0
s.n; q; r/ D
ˆ
ˆ Y
t
q 2i Y
2t
ˆ  .q ni  1/; 0  r D 2t C 1  n:
:̂ q 2i  1
i D1 i D0

9.12 Any of the three proofs of the Appendix to Chap. 9 can be carried over to the
present exercise.
Chapter 10
10.3 (b) Use the Perron–Frobenius theorem (Theorem 3.3).
10.6 (a) Consider A` .
10.6 (f) There is an example with nine vertices that is not a de Bruijn graph.
10.6 (c) Let E be the (column) eigenvector of A.D/ corresponding to the largest
eigenvalue. Consider AE and A t E, where t denotes transpose.
Chapter 11
11.4 Use the unimodularity of the basis matrices C T and B T .
11.6 (a) Mimic the proof of Theorem 9.8 (the Matrix-Tree Theorem).
11.6 (b) Consider ZZ t .
212 Hints for Some Exercises

Chapter 12
12.4 The best strategy involves the concept of odd and even permutations.
12.5 For the easiest solution, don’t use linear algebra but rather use the original
Oddtown theorem.
12.12 What are the eigenvalues of skew-symmetric matrices?
12.15 Consider the incidence matrix M of the sets and their elements. Consider
two cases: det M D 0 and det M ¤ 0.
12.18 Consider the first three rows of H . Another method is to use row operations
to factor a large power of 2 from the determinant.
12.21 It is easiest to proceed directly and not use the proof of Theorem
P 12.18.
12.23 First find a simple explicit formula for the generating function n0 f .n/x n .
12.26 Differentiate with respect to x (12.10) satisfied by y.
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Index

Numbers binary de Bruijn sequence, see de Bruijn

4483130665195087, 32, 40 sequence
binary sequence, 156
Binet-Cauchy theorem, 136, 137
A binomial moment, 29
van Aardenne-Ehrenfest, Tanya, 159 bipartite graph, 7
access time, 23 bipartition, 7
acts on (by a group), 43 block (of a block design), 191
acyclic (set of edges), 168 block design, 191
adjacency matrix, 1 Bolker, Ethan David, 17
adjacent (vertices), 1 bond, 165
adjoint (operator), 36 bond space, 165
algebraic (Laurent series), 206 boolean algebra, 31
algebraic integer, 197 Borchardt, Carl Wilhelm, 147
Anderson, Ian, 40 Bose, Raj Chandra, 192, 203
Andrews, George W. Eyre, 72 Brenti, Francesco, 53
antichain, 33 de Bruijn, Nicolaas Govert, 97, 159
antisymmetry, 31 de Bruijn sequence, 156
automorphism de Bruijn graph, 156
of a graph, 98 bump
of a poset, 44 in RSK algorithm for CSPP, 117
automorphism group in RSK algorithm for SYT, 113
of a graph, 98 Burnside’s lemma, 80, 97
of a poset, 44 Burnside, William, 97

B C
Babai, Lászlo, 203 C-algebra, 200
balanced digraph, 151 Caro, Yair, 203
balanced incomplete block design, 191 Caspard, Nathalie, 40
basis matrix, 168 Cauchy, Augustin Louis, 97
Bender, Edward Anton, 125 Cauchy-Binet theorem, 136, 137
Berlekamp, Elwyn Ralph, 203 Cauchy-Frobenius lemma, 80, 97
Bernardi, Olivier, 143 Cayley, Arthur, 146, 147
BEST theorem, 159 chain (in a poset), 32
BIBD, 191 characteristic polynomial, 7
Bidkhori, Hoda, 159 characteristic vector (of a set), 189

R.P. Stanley, Algebraic Combinatorics: Walks, Trees, Tableaux, and More, 219
Undergraduate Texts in Mathematics, DOI 10.1007/978-1-4614-6998-8,
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2013
220 Index

circuit, 163 E
circulant (matrix), 195 edge reconstruction conjecture, 50
circulation, 163 edge set (of a graph), 1
closed walk, 4 eigenvalues of a graph, 3
coboundary, 164 elementary cycle, 163
Collatz, Lothar, 7 Engel, Konrad, 40
coloring, 76 equivalent colorings, 76, 77
column-strict plane partition, 117 Erdős-Moser conjecture, 71
commutative diagram, 48 weak, 71
complementary graph, 148 Eriksson, Kimmo, 72
complete bipartite graph, 8, 147 Euler phi-function, 85
complete graph, 4 Euler’s constant, 188
complete p-partite graph, 8 Eulerian cycle (in a graph), 151
complexity (of a graph), 135 Eulerian digraph, 151
conjugate Eulerian graph, 151
of an algebraic number, 198 Eulerian tour
partition, 59 in a digraph, 151
connected graph, 135 in a graph, 151
cotree, 170 extended Smith diagram, 182
covers (in a poset), 31
CSPP, 117
F
cube (graph), 11
face (of a planar embedding), 178
Curtin, Eugene, 203
faithful action, 43
Cvetković, Dragoš M., 7
Fermat’s Last Theorem, 196
cycle index polynomial, 83
Ferrers diagram, 58
cycle indicator, 97
Fibonacci number, 130, 147, 200
of a group of permutations, 83
final vertex (of an edge)
of a permutation, 83
in a digraph, 151
cycle space, 163
in an orientation, 139
cyclic group, 18
Fishburn, Peter, 40
cyclomatic number, 170
Fisher, Ronald Aylmer, 192, 203
cyclotomic polynomial, 199
Flye Sainte-Marie, Camille, 159
Fomin, Sergey Vladimirovich, 124
forest, 145, 170
D
Forsyth, Andrew Russell, 125
Dedekind, Julius Wilhelm Richard, 17
Frame, James Sutherland, 123
DeDeo, Michelle Rose, 18
Frame–Robinson–Thrall, 105
degree (of a vertex), 8, 21
Frankl, Peter, 203
deleted neighborhood (of a vertex), 204
Franzblau, Deborah Sharon, 124
D-finite, 206
Frobenius, Ferdinand Georg, 17, 97, 98, 123
Diaconis, Persi Warren, 18, 159
Fulton, William Edgar, 125
diagonal (of a power series), 207
Fundamental Theorem of Algebra, 52
diagram (of a partition), 58
differentiably finite, 206
digraph, 151 G
of a permutation, 144 Gál, Anna, 203
dihedral necklace, 86 Gardner, Martin, 183
direct product (of posets), 73 Gauss’ lemma, 196
directed graph, 151 Gaussian coefficient, 61
Doob, Michael, 7 generalized ballot sequence, 123
doubly-rooted tree, 144 generating function, 6, 79
down (linear transformation), 36 G-equivalent, 44
dual (of a planar graph), 178 colorings, 77
Dynkin, Eugene (Evgenii) Borisovitsh, 72 germ, 200
Index 221

Good, Irving John, 159 Kirchhoff, Gustav Robert, 146, 183

graded poset, 32 Kishore, Shaunak, 159
Graham, Ronald Lewis, 18, 159, 203 Knuth, Donald Ervin, 110, 124, 125
graph, 1 Krasikov, Ilia, 53
Grassl, Richard, 124 Krattenthaler, Christian Friedrich, 124
Greene, Curtis, 124 Kronecker, Leopold, 198
group determinant, 17 Kummer, Ernst Eduard, 196
group reduction function, 97 Kung, Joseph PeeSin, 18

H
L
Hadamard matrix, 194
laplacian matrix, 139
Hamiltonian cycle, 18
lattice, 57
Hamming weight, 14
lattice permutation, 123
Harary, Frank, 97
Laurent series, 206
Hardy, Godfrey Harold, 53
Leclerc, Bruno, 40
Harper, Lawrence Hueston, 53
van Leeuwen, Marc A. A., 124
Hasse diagram, 31
length
Hasse walk, 104
of a chain, 32
Hawkins, Thomas W., 18
of a necklace, 54, 85
Hillman, Abraham, 124
of a walk, 2
hitting time, 23
Leung, Ka Hin, 203
hook length formula, 105, 123
level (of a ranked poset), 32
Horn, Roger Alan, 27
Lights Out Puzzle, 203
Hughes, J. W. B., 72
Littlewood, Dudley Ernest, 124
Hurwitz, Adolf, 98
Littlewood, John Edensor, 53
Littlewood–Richardson rule, 124
I log-concave, 51
incidence matrix polynomial, 55
Oddtown, 189 logarithmically concave, 51
of a digraph, 166 loop
of a graph, 139 in a digraph, 151
incident, 1 in a graph, 1
indegree (of a vertex), 151 Lovász, László, 27, 53
induced subgraph, 194 Lubell, David, 33, 38, 40
initial vertex (of an edge)
in a digraph, 151
in an orientation, 139 M
internal zero, 51 MacMahon, Percy Alexander, 123–125
inverse bump (in RSK algorithm), 115 mail carrier, 155
isolated vertex, 23 Markov chain, 21
isomorphic Matoušek, Jiřı́, 203
graphs, 49 matrix
posets, 32 irreducible, 23
isomorphism class (of simple graphs), 49 nonnegative, 23
permutation, 23
matrix analysis, 27
J Matrix-Tree Theorem, 141, 147
Johnson, Charles Royal, 27 matroid, 180
Joyal, André, 144, 147 maximal chain, 32
Miltersen, Peter Bro, 203
K Möbius function, 98
Kazarinoff, Nicholas D., 183 Monjardet, Bernard, 40
Kirchhoff’s laws, 173 Moon, John W., 147
222 Index

Müller, Vladimı́r, 53 planted forest, 145

multiple edge, 1 pole (of a Smith diagram), 180
multiset, 1 Pollak, Henry Otto, 203
Pólya, George (György), 53, 75, 97
Pólya theory, 75
N polynomially recursive function, 200
n-cycle, 18 poset, 31
necklace, 54, 85 positive definite, 192
neighborhood (of a vertex), 193 positive semidefinite, 37, 192
Newton, Isaac, 51, 53 potential, 164
Nijenhuis, Albert, 124 potential difference, 165
N-matrix, 118 Pouzet, Maurice André, 40, 53
no internal zero, 51 P -recursive function, 200
nonuniform Fisher inequality, 192 primitive necklace, 98
Novelli, Jean-Christophe, 124 probability matrix, 21, 27
Proctor, Robert Alan, 72
O Prüfer sequence, 143
Oddtown, 189 Prüfer, Ernst Paul Heinz, 143, 147
O’Hara, Kathleen Marie, 65, 72
Ohm’s law, 173
orbit, 44 Q
order (of a poset), 32 q-binomial coefficient, 41, 61
order-matching, 34 quantum order-matching, 36
explict for Bn , 39 quotient poset, 45
order-raising operator, 35
orientation (of a graph), 138
orthogonal complement, 167 R
orthogonal Lie algebra, 71 Radon transform, 13
orthogonal subspace, 193 Radon, Johann Karl August, 17
outdegree (of a vertex), 151 rank
of a boolean algebra, 31
of a graded poset, 32
P of a poset element, 32
Pak, Igor M., 124 rank-generating function, 33
Palmer, Edgar Milan, 97 rank-symmetric, 33
parallel connection, 173 rank-unimodal, 33
Parker, William Vann, 72 reciprocity theorem, 99
part (of a partition of n), 57 Redfield, John Howard, 75, 97
partially ordered set, 31 reduced incidence matrix, 140
partition reflexivity, 31
of a set X, 44 region (of a planar embedding), 178
of an integer n, 57 regular graph, 22
Pascal’s triangle, 33, 62 Remmel, Jeffrey Brian, 124
q-analogue, 62 Robinson, Gilbert de Beauregard, 109, 123,
path (in a graph), 135 124
closed, 18 Robinson–Schensted correspondence, 110
perfect squared rectangle, 180 Roditty, Yehuda, 53
Perron–Frobenius theorem, 23 Rolle’s theorem, 52
physical intuition, 173 root (of a tree), 145
Pitman, James William, 145, 147 Rosenberg, Ivo G., 40, 53
planar embedding, 178 row insertion, 113, 117
planar graph, 178 Rowlinson, Peter, 7
plane partition, 115 RSK algorithm, 109, 124
history of, 124 Ryser, Herbert John, 203
Index 223

S tour (in a digraph), 151

Sachs, Horst, 7 trace (of a plane partition), 132
Sagan, Bruce Eli, 125 transitive (group action), 55, 80
Schensted, Craige Eugene, 109, 124 transitivity, 31
Schmid, Josef, 72 transport, 48
Schmidt, Bernard, 203 transposition, 99
Schützenberger, Marcel-Paul, 124 tree, 135
semidefinite, 37, 192 Trotter, William Thomas, Jr., 40
series connection, 173 Turyn, Richard Joseph, 195, 203
series-parallel network, 174 Tutte, William Thomas, 159, 183
shape (of a CSPP), 117 two-line array, 118
shifted Ferrers diagram, 119 type
Simić, Slobodan, 7 of a Hasse walk, 104
simple (squared square), 183 of a permutation, 82
simple graph, 1
simple group, 99
Sinogowitz, Ulrich, 7 U
Smith diagram, 180 unimodal sequence, 33
Smith, Cedric Austen Bardell, 159 unimodular (matrix), 171
solid partition, 123 universal cycle for Sn , 161
spanning subgraph, 49, 135 universality (of tensor products), 202
spectral graph theory, 7 up (linear transformation), 35
Sperner poset, 33
Sperner property, 33
Sperner’s theorem, 33 V
Sperner, Emanuel, 40 valid -word, 106
squared rectangle, 180 Velasquez, Elinor Laura, 18
stabilizer, 46 Venkataramana, Praveen, 147
standard Young tableau, 104 vertex bipartition, 7
Stanley, Richard Peter, 40, 53, 72, 98, 124, 125, vertex reconstruction conjecture, 50
159, 203 vertex set, 1
stationary distribution, 28
von Staudt, Karl Georg Christian, 146
W
Stirling number, signless of the first kind, 88
walk, 2
Stoyanovskii, Alexander V., 124
Warshauer, Max, 203
strongly log-concave, 51
weakly switching-reconstructible, 55
sum (of vector spaces), 201
weight
support (of a function), 168
of a binary vector, 14
Sutner, Klaus, 193, 203
of a necklace, 54
switching (at a vertex), 54
Weitzenkamp, Roger, 183
switching reconstructible, 55
Wheatstone bridge, 174
Sylvester, James Joseph, 65, 72, 147
Wilf, Herbert Saul, 124
symmetric chain decomposition, 40
wreath product, 64
symmetric function, 79
symmetric plane partition, 132
symmetric sequence, 33 Y
SYT, 104 Young diagram, 58
Young, Alfred, 57, 123, 124
Young’s lattice, 57
T
tensor product (of vector spaces), 202
Thrall, Robert McDowell, 123 Z
total resistance, 174 Zeilberger, Doron, 72, 124
totient function, 85 Zyklus, 83